Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Somalia 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 Somalia, that number is 0.1% of people as of 2024.
live 6.7 years less
In Ghana, the average life expectancy is 66 years (63 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2024. In Somalia, that number is 59 years (56 years for men, 62 years for women) as of 2024.
see 77.8% less spent on your healthcare
Ghana spends $234 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Somalia spends $52 as of 2023.
have 43.8% less access to essential health services
Ghana scores 48 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Somalia scores 27 as of 2021.
be 49.6% more likely to die by suicide
Ghana has a suicide rate of 5.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Somalia, it is 8.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 6.4 times more likely to be unemployed
In Ghana, 3.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Somalia, that number is 18.9% as of 2025.
make 79.7% less money
Ghana has a GDP per capita of $3,257 as of 2025, while in Somalia, the GDP per capita is $661 as of 2025.
Life
have 63.4% more children
In Ghana, there are approximately 25.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Somalia, there are 42.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 2.4 times 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 Somalia, 563.0 women do as of 2023.
be 29.2% less likely to be literate
In Ghana, the literacy rate is 76.5% as of 2021. In Somalia, it is 54.1% as of 2022.
be 2.4 times more likely to die during infancy
In Ghana, approximately 27.5 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Somalia, on the other hand, 65.4 children do as of 2024.
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 Somalia, that number is 50% of people on average (79% in urban areas, and 24% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 61.3% less likely to have internet access
In Ghana, approximately 72.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Somalia, about 27.9% do as of 2024.
be 16.3% 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 Somalia, that number is 75% of people on average (84% in urban areas, and 68% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 26.8% more on healthcare
Ghana spends 3.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Somalia, that number is 3.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 5.6 times more coastline
Ghana has a total of 539 km of coastline. In Somalia, that number is 3,025 km.
Safety
be 22.0% less likely to die in a road accident
In Ghana, road accidents kill 25.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Somalia, they kill 20.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 3.9 times more strain on fresh water
Ghana withdraws 6% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Somalia withdraws 25% as of 2022.
Environment
be 28.1% less likely to die from air pollution
In Ghana, air pollution causes 89.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Somalia, it causes 64.0 as of 2019.
emit 92.9% less CO2
Ghana emits 0.7 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Somalia emits 0.1 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Ghana vs. Somalia
Somalia: At a glance
How big is Somalia compared to Ghana? See an in-depth size comparison.