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

Health

be 52.8% less likely to be obese

In Iran, 24.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Senegal, that number is 11.6% of people as of 2024.

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live 8.9 years less

In Iran, the average life expectancy is 78 years (76 years for men, 80 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 80.7% less spent on your healthcare

Iran spends $1,064 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Senegal spends $206 as of 2023.

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have 94.0% fewer doctors per person

Iran has 18.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Senegal has 1.1 as of 2023.

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have 32.4% less access to essential health services

Iran scores 74 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Senegal scores 50 as of 2021.

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be 66.1% more likely to die by suicide

Iran has a suicide rate of 4.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Senegal, it is 6.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 67.1% less likely to be unemployed

In Iran, 8.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Senegal, that number is 2.7% as of 2025.

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make 50.2% less money

Iran has a GDP per capita of $3,924 as of 2025, while in Senegal, the GDP per capita is $1,955 as of 2025.

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Life

have 2.3 times more children

In Iran, there are approximately 12.6 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 14.8 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Iran, approximately 16.0 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 43.4% less likely to be literate

In Iran, the literacy rate is 88.9% as of 2023. In Senegal, it is 50.4% as of 2023.

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be 2.8 times more likely to die during infancy

In Iran, approximately 10.3 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 Iran, 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 29.6% less likely to have internet access

In Iran, approximately 85.3% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Senegal, about 60.1% do as of 2024.

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be 10.0% less likely to have access to drinking water

In Iran, approximately 98% of people have access to drinking water (99% in urban areas, and 95% 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 28.4% less on healthcare

Iran spends 6.0% 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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spend 2.2 times more on education

Iran spends 2.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Senegal spends 6.2% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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Geography

see 78.2% less coastline

Iran has a total of 2,440 km of coastline. In Senegal, that number is 531 km.

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Safety

be 88.8% less likely to be murdered

Iran has a homicide rate of 2.4 per 100,000 people as of 2014. In Senegal, that number is 0.3 per 100,000 as of 2015.

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Infrastructure

live with 80.0% less strain on fresh water

Iran withdraws 81% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Senegal withdraws 16% as of 2022.

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find 66.5% less home broadband

Iran has 12.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Senegal has 4.0 as of 2024.

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use 89.2% less electricity

Iran uses 3,815 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Senegal uses 410 kWh as of 2023.

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Environment

emit 91.5% less CO2

Iran emits 9.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Senegal emits 0.8 tonnes as of 2024.

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be 27.5% more likely to die from air pollution

In Iran, air pollution causes 51.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Senegal, it causes 65.0 as of 2019.

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Sources: World Bank (2015–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2014–2021), 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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