Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Iraq, you would:
Health
be 79.4% less likely to be obese
In Iraq, 39.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
be 14.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Iraq, 0.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.4% of people as of 2024.
live 10.5 years less
In Iraq, the average life expectancy is 72 years (70 years for men, 74 years for women) as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2024.
see 81.1% less spent on your healthcare
Iraq spends $843 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
have 86.9% fewer doctors per person
Iraq has 10.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Sierra Leone has 1.3 as of 2022.
have 30.5% less access to essential health services
Iraq scores 59 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sierra Leone scores 41 as of 2021.
be 2.1 times more likely to die by suicide
Iraq has a suicide rate of 3.0 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 79.7% less likely to be unemployed
In Iraq, 15.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
make 84.4% less money
Iraq has a GDP per capita of $5,410 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
have 17.7% more children
In Iraq, there are approximately 25.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, there are 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 5.4 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Iraq, approximately 66.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, 354.0 women do as of 2023.
be 42.2% less likely to be literate
In Iraq, the literacy rate is 84.1% as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 48.6% as of 2022.
be 2.7 times more likely to die during infancy
In Iraq, approximately 20.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, on the other hand, 54.6 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 64.5% less likely to have access to electricity
In Iraq, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 36% of people on average (56% in urban areas, and 19% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 69.2% less likely to have internet access
In Iraq, approximately 81.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
be 30.8% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Iraq, approximately 98% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 95% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 68% of people on average (82% in urban areas, and 57% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 14.6% less on healthcare
Iraq spends 5.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 6.9 times more coastline
Iraq has a total of 58 km of coastline. In Sierra Leone, that number is 402 km.
Safety
be 35.8% less likely to die in a road accident
In Iraq, road accidents kill 21.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, they kill 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 99.2% less strain on fresh water
Iraq withdraws 60% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 96.7% less CO2
Iraq emits 5.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 11.5% more likely to die from air pollution
In Iraq, air pollution causes 87.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2022), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Iraq vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to Iraq? See an in-depth size comparison.