Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Mauritania instead of Ghana, you would:
Health
be 93.3% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Ghana, 1.5% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 0.1% of people as of 2024.
live 3.0 years longer
In Ghana, the average life expectancy is 66 years (63 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024.
see 28.7% more spent on your healthcare
Ghana spends $234 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Mauritania spends $302 as of 2023.
be 49.1% less likely to die by suicide
Ghana has a suicide rate of 5.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Mauritania, it is 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 65.6% more likely to be obese
In Ghana, 14.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 24.1% of people as of 2024.
have 16.7% less access to essential health services
Ghana scores 48 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Mauritania scores 40 as of 2021.
Economy
be 3.5 times more likely to be unemployed
In Ghana, 3.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Mauritania, that number is 10.3% as of 2025.
be 35.9% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Ghana, 23.4% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In Mauritania, however, that number is 31.8% as of 2019.
make 32.5% less money
Ghana has a GDP per capita of $3,257 as of 2025, while in Mauritania, the GDP per capita is $2,198 as of 2025.
Life
have 31.3% more children
In Ghana, there are approximately 25.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Mauritania, there are 34.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 62.8% more likely to die during childbirth
In Ghana, approximately 234.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Mauritania, 381.0 women do as of 2023.
be 12.4% less likely to be literate
In Ghana, the literacy rate is 76.5% as of 2021. In Mauritania, it is 67.0% as of 2021.
Basic Needs
be 43.8% less likely to have access to electricity
In Ghana, approximately 90% of people have electricity access (98% in urban areas, and 78% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Mauritania, that number is 50% of people on average (94% in urban areas, and 1% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 36.6% less likely to have internet access
In Ghana, approximately 72.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Mauritania, about 45.8% do as of 2024.
be 14.1% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Ghana, approximately 90% of people have access to drinking water (99% in urban areas, and 76% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 77% of people on average (90% in urban areas, and 59% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 2.6 times more on education
Ghana spends 2.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Mauritania spends 7.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
spend 47.1% more on healthcare
Ghana spends 3.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Mauritania, that number is 4.3% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 39.9% more coastline
Ghana has a total of 539 km of coastline. In Mauritania, that number is 754 km.
Safety
be 45.4% less likely to be murdered
Ghana has a homicide rate of 1.8 per 100,000 people as of 2022. In Mauritania, that number is 1.0 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 63.3% less likely to die in a road accident
In Ghana, road accidents kill 25.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Mauritania, they kill 9.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 43.9% more home broadband
Ghana has 0.7 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Mauritania has 0.9 as of 2024.
live with 2.1 times more strain on fresh water
Ghana withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Mauritania withdraws 13% as of 2022.
Environment
be 30.3% less likely to die from air pollution
In Ghana, air pollution causes 89.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Mauritania, it causes 62.0 as of 2019.
emit 38.6% more CO2
Ghana emits 0.7 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Mauritania emits 1.0 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2016–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Ghana vs. Mauritania
Mauritania: At a glance
How big is Mauritania compared to Ghana? See an in-depth size comparison.