Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Madagascar instead of Gambia, you would:
Health
be 61.5% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Gambia, 1.3% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Madagascar, that number is 0.5% of people as of 2024.
be 63.6% less likely to be obese
In Gambia, 12.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Madagascar, that number is 4.5% of people as of 2024.
have 91.1% more doctors per person
Gambia has 0.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Madagascar has 1.7 as of 2022.
live 2.2 years less
In Gambia, the average life expectancy is 66 years (64 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2024. In Madagascar, that number is 64 years (62 years for men, 66 years for women) as of 2024.
see 33.2% less spent on your healthcare
Gambia spends $94 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Madagascar spends $63 as of 2023.
have 23.9% less access to essential health services
Gambia scores 46 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Madagascar scores 35 as of 2021.
be 26.6% more likely to die by suicide
Gambia has a suicide rate of 4.8 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Madagascar, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 53.4% less likely to be unemployed
In Gambia, 6.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Madagascar, that number is 3.0% as of 2025.
be 40.8% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Gambia, 53.4% live below the poverty line as of 2020. In Madagascar, however, that number is 75.2% as of 2021.
make 34.8% less money
Gambia has a GDP per capita of $919 as of 2025, while in Madagascar, the GDP per capita is $599 as of 2025.
Life
be 44.6% more likely to be literate
In Gambia, the literacy rate is 51.6% as of 2021. In Madagascar, it is 74.7% as of 2021.
be 25.7% more likely to die during childbirth
In Gambia, approximately 354.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Madagascar, 445.0 women do as of 2023.
be 31.5% more likely to die during infancy
In Gambia, approximately 32.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Madagascar, on the other hand, 43.0 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 41.1% less likely to have access to electricity
In Gambia, approximately 67% of people have electricity access (85% in urban areas, and 35% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Madagascar, that number is 39% of people on average (76% in urban areas, and 15% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 62.3% less likely to have internet access
In Gambia, approximately 49.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Madagascar, about 18.7% do as of 2024.
be 36.5% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Gambia, approximately 87% of people have access to drinking water (92% in urban areas, and 78% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Madagascar, that number is 55% of people on average (78% in urban areas, and 39% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 18.7% more on healthcare
Gambia spends 2.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Madagascar, that number is 3.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 60.4 times more coastline
Gambia has a total of 80 km of coastline. In Madagascar, that number is 4,828 km.
Infrastructure
find 76.9% less home broadband
Gambia has 0.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Madagascar has 0.1 as of 2023.
live with 5.1 times more strain on fresh water
Gambia withdraws 2% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Madagascar withdraws 11% as of 2022.
Environment
be 35.6% less likely to die from air pollution
In Gambia, air pollution causes 90.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Madagascar, it causes 58.0 as of 2019.
emit 16.7% less CO2
Gambia emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Madagascar emits 0.1 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Gambia vs. Madagascar
Madagascar: At a glance
How big is Madagascar compared to Gambia? See an in-depth size comparison.