If you lived in Senegal instead of Finland, you would:

Health

be 52.1% less likely to be obese

In Finland, 24.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Senegal, that number is 11.6% of people as of 2024.

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be 53.6% less likely to die by suicide

Finland has a suicide rate of 14.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Senegal, it is 6.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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live 13.4 years less

In Finland, the average life expectancy is 82 years (80 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Senegal, that number is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 96.8% less spent on your healthcare

Finland spends $6,433 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Senegal spends $206 as of 2023.

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have 97.0% fewer doctors per person

Finland has 36.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. Senegal has 1.1 as of 2023.

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have 41.9% less access to essential health services

Finland scores 86 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Senegal scores 50 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 71.1% less likely to be unemployed

In Finland, 9.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Senegal, that number is 2.7% as of 2025.

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be 3.1 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In Finland, 12.2% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Senegal, however, that number is 37.5% as of 2021.

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make 96.5% less money

Finland has a GDP per capita of $56,149 as of 2025, while in Senegal, the GDP per capita is $1,955 as of 2025.

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Life

have 3.7 times more children

In Finland, there are approximately 7.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Senegal, there are 29.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 29.6 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Finland, approximately 8.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Senegal, 237.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 15.2 times more likely to die during infancy

In Finland, approximately 1.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Senegal, on the other hand, 28.9 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 25.8% less likely to have access to electricity

In Finland, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Senegal, that number is 74% of people on average (96% in urban areas, and 56% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 35.9% less likely to have internet access

In Finland, approximately 93.7% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Senegal, about 60.1% do as of 2024.

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be 12.0% less likely to have access to drinking water

In Finland, approximately 100% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Senegal, that number is 88% of people on average (95% in urban areas, and 81% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 58.7% less on healthcare

Finland spends 10.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Senegal, that number is 4.3% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 57.5% less coastline

Finland has a total of 1,250 km of coastline. In Senegal, that number is 531 km.

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Safety

be 5.0 times more likely to die in a road accident

In Finland, road accidents kill 4.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Senegal, they kill 20.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 88.9% less home broadband

Finland has 36.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Senegal has 4.0 as of 2024.

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live with 2.3 times more strain on fresh water

Finland withdraws 7% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Senegal withdraws 16% as of 2022.

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use 97.2% less electricity

Finland uses 14,819 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Senegal uses 410 kWh as of 2023.

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Environment

emit 86.1% less CO2

Finland emits 5.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Senegal emits 0.8 tonnes as of 2024.

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be 9.3 times more likely to die from air pollution

In Finland, air pollution causes 7.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Senegal, it causes 65.0 as of 2019.

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Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this

Senegal: At a glance

Senegal is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 192,530 sq km. The French colonies of Senegal and the French Sudan were merged in 1959 and granted their independence as the Mali Federation in 1960. The union broke up after only a few months. Senegal joined with The Gambia to form the nominal confederation of Senegambia in 1982. The envisaged integration of the two countries was never carried out, and the union was dissolved in 1989. The Movement of Democratic Forces in the Casamance (MFDC) has led a low-level separatist insurgency in southern Senegal since the 1980s, and several peace deals have failed to resolve the conflict. Nevertheless, Senegal remains one of the most stable democracies in Africa and has a long history of participating in international peacekeeping and regional mediation. Senegal was ruled by a Socialist Party for 40 years until Abdoulaye WADE was elected president in 2000. He was reelected in 2007 and during his two terms amended Senegal's constitution over a dozen times to increase executive power and to weaken the opposition. His decision to run for a third presidential term sparked a large public backlash that led to his defeat in a March 2012 runoff election with Macky SALL.
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