If you lived in Equatorial Guinea instead of Iceland, you would:

Health

be 13.5% less likely to be obese

In Iceland, 22.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 19.2% of people as of 2024.

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be 41.0% less likely to die by suicide

Iceland has a suicide rate of 11.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Equatorial Guinea, it is 7.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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live 18.9 years less

In Iceland, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 64 years (62 years for men, 66 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 91.2% less spent on your healthcare

Iceland spends $6,927 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Equatorial Guinea spends $609 as of 2023.

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have 96.5% fewer doctors per person

Iceland has 43.7 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Equatorial Guinea has 1.5 as of 2022.

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have 48.3% less access to essential health services

Iceland scores 89 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Equatorial Guinea scores 46 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 2.3 times more likely to be unemployed

In Iceland, 3.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 8.3% as of 2025.

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make 93.3% less money

Iceland has a GDP per capita of $98,323 as of 2025, while in Equatorial Guinea, the GDP per capita is $6,615 as of 2025.

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Life

have 2.7 times more children

In Iceland, there are approximately 11.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Equatorial Guinea, there are 30.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 58.0 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Iceland, approximately 3.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Equatorial Guinea, 174.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 22.7 times more likely to die during infancy

In Iceland, approximately 2.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Equatorial Guinea, on the other hand, 47.6 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 33.1% less likely to have access to electricity

In Iceland, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 67% of people on average (89% in urban areas, and 2% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 35.5% less likely to have internet access

In Iceland, approximately 98.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Equatorial Guinea, about 63.3% do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 61.0% less on healthcare

Iceland spends 9.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 3.5% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 94.0% less coastline

Iceland has a total of 4,970 km of coastline. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 296 km.

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Safety

be 4.9 times more likely to die in a road accident

In Iceland, road accidents kill 2.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Equatorial Guinea, they kill 11.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

live with 53.8% less strain on fresh water

Iceland withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Equatorial Guinea withdraws 0% as of 2022.

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find 99.7% less home broadband

Iceland has 37.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Equatorial Guinea has 0.1 as of 2022.

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use 98.4% less electricity

Iceland uses 48,998 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Equatorial Guinea uses 792 kWh as of 2023.

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Environment

emit 70.1% less CO2

Iceland emits 8.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Equatorial Guinea emits 2.5 tonnes as of 2024.

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be 7.4 times more likely to die from air pollution

In Iceland, air pollution causes 8.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Equatorial Guinea, it causes 59.0 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

Equatorial Guinea: At a glance

Equatorial Guinea is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 28,051 sq km. Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President Teodoro Obiang NGUEMA MBASOGO has ruled the country since 1979 when he seized power in a coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996, 2002, and 2009 presidential elections - as well as the 1999, 2004, 2008, and 2013 legislative elections - were widely seen as flawed. The president exerts almost total control over the political system and has discouraged political opposition. Equatorial Guinea has experienced rapid economic growth due to the discovery of large offshore oil reserves, and in the last decade has become Sub-Saharan Africa's third largest oil exporter. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production, resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, improvements in the population's living standards have been slow to develop.
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