Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Moldova instead of Ireland, you would:

Health

be 25.3% less likely to be obese

In Ireland, 25.3% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Moldova, that number is 18.9% of people as of 2016.

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live 9.2 years less

In Ireland, the average life expectancy is 82 years (79 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2022. In Moldova, that number is 72 years (69 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2022.

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Economy

be 65.9% less likely to be unemployed

In Ireland, 4.4% of adults are unemployed as of 2024. In Moldova, that number is 1.5% as of 2024.

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pay a 62.5% lower top tax rate

Ireland has a top tax rate of 48.0% as of 2016. In Moldova, the top tax rate is 18.0% as of 2016.

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make 85.7% less money

Ireland has a GDP per capita of $115,300 as of 2024, while in Moldova, the GDP per capita is $16,500 as of 2024.

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be 2.2 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In Ireland, 14.0% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Moldova, however, that number is 31.1% as of 2022.

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Life

be 4.8 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Ireland, approximately 4.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2023. In Moldova, 19.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 3.3 times more likely to die during infancy

In Ireland, approximately 3.5 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Moldova, on the other hand, 11.6 children do as of 2022.

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have 23.7% fewer children

In Ireland, there are approximately 10.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2025. In Moldova, there are 8.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2025.

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Basic Needs

be 17.5% less likely to have internet access

In Ireland, approximately 97.0% of the population has internet access as of 2023. In Moldova, about 80.0% do as of 2023.

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Expenditures

spend 2.1 times more on education

Ireland spends 3.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Moldova spends 6.4% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

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The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: State tax Service, The World Factbook, The Office of the Revenue Commissioners.

Moldova: At a glance

Moldova is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 32,891 sq km. Part of Romania during the interwar period, Moldova was incorporated into the Soviet Union at the close of World War II. Although the country has been independent from the USSR since 1991, Russian forces have remained on Moldovan territory east of the Nistru River supporting the separatist region of Transnistria, composed of a Slavic majority population (mostly Ukrainians and Russians), but with a sizeable ethnic Moldovan minority. One of the poorest nations in Europe, Moldova became the first former Soviet state to elect a communist, Vladimir VORONIN, as its president in 2001. VORONIN served as Moldova's president until he resigned in September 2009, following the opposition's gain of a narrow majority in July parliamentary elections and the Communist Party's (PCRM) subsequent inability to attract the three-fifths of parliamentary votes required to elect a president and, by doing so, put into place a permanent government. Four Moldovan opposition parties formed a new coalition, the Alliance for European Integration (AEI), iterations of which have acted as Moldova's governing coalitions since. Moldova experienced significant political uncertainty between 2009 and early 2012, holding three general elections and numerous presidential ballots in parliament, all of which failed to secure a president. Following November 2010 parliamentary elections, a reconstituted AEI-coalition consisting of three of the four original AEI parties formed a government, and in March 2012 was finally able to elect an independent as president. As of late May 2013, the ruling coalition - comprised of two of the original AEI parties and a splinter group from a third - is called the Pro-European Coalition. In November 2013, the Moldovan Government initialed an Association Agreement with the European Union (EU), advancing the coalition's policy priority of EU integration.
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