If you lived in Kazakhstan instead of Jamaica, you would:

Health

be 72.7% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Jamaica, 1.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, that number is 0.3% of people as of 2024.

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live 2.9 years longer

In Jamaica, the average life expectancy is 72 years (69 years for men, 74 years for women) as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, that number is 75 years (70 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 40.0% less likely to be obese

In Jamaica, 35.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, that number is 21.1% of people as of 2024.

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see 68.1% more spent on your healthcare

Jamaica spends $869 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Kazakhstan spends $1,460 as of 2023.

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have 8.2 times more doctors per person

Jamaica has 4.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Kazakhstan has 37.5 as of 2023.

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be 8.6 times more likely to die by suicide

Jamaica has a suicide rate of 1.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Kazakhstan, it is 14.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 35.9% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Jamaica, 7.8% live below the poverty line as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, however, that number is 5.0% as of 2024.

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make 83.6% more money

Jamaica has a GDP per capita of $8,003 as of 2025, while in Kazakhstan, the GDP per capita is $14,692 as of 2025.

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be 45.0% more likely to be unemployed

In Jamaica, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Kazakhstan, that number is 4.8% as of 2025.

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Life

be 92.3% less likely to die during childbirth

In Jamaica, approximately 130.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Kazakhstan, 10.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 12.5% more likely to be literate

In Jamaica, the literacy rate is 88.7% as of 2015. In Kazakhstan, it is 99.8% as of 2018.

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be 54.9% less likely to die during infancy

In Jamaica, approximately 16.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, on the other hand, 7.4 children do as of 2024.

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have 70.5% more children

In Jamaica, there are approximately 11.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, there are 19.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 11.7% more likely to have access to drinking water

In Jamaica, approximately 88% of people have access to drinking water (90% in urban areas, and 84% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, that number is 98% of people on average (98% in urban areas, and 98% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 11.8% less on education

Jamaica spends 5.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Kazakhstan spends 4.9% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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spend 50.4% less on healthcare

Jamaica spends 7.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Kazakhstan, that number is 3.8% of GDP as of 2023.

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Safety

be 94.8% less likely to be murdered

Jamaica has a homicide rate of 49.4 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Kazakhstan, that number is 2.5 per 100,000 as of 2022.

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be 31.5% less likely to die in a road accident

In Jamaica, road accidents kill 17.8 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Kazakhstan, they kill 12.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

use 4.3 times more electricity

Jamaica uses 1,205 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Kazakhstan uses 5,146 kWh as of 2023.

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live with 2.8 times more strain on fresh water

Jamaica withdraws 12% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Kazakhstan withdraws 35% as of 2022.

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Environment

be 3.1 times more likely to die from air pollution

In Jamaica, air pollution causes 22.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Kazakhstan, it causes 68.0 as of 2019.

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emit 4.4 times more CO2

Jamaica emits 2.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Kazakhstan emits 12.6 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2015–2018). How we calculate this

Kazakhstan: At a glance

Kazakhstan is a sovereign country in Central Asia, with a total land area of approximately 2,699,700 sq km. Ethnic Kazakhs, a mix of Turkic and Mongol nomadic tribes who migrated to the region by the 13th century, were rarely united as a single nation. The area was conquered by Russia in the 18th century, and Kazakhstan became a Soviet Republic in 1936. During the 1950s and 1960s agricultural "Virgin Lands" program, Soviet citizens were encouraged to help cultivate Kazakhstan's northern pastures. This influx of immigrants (mostly Russians, but also some other deported nationalities) skewed the ethnic mixture and enabled non-ethnic Kazakhs to outnumber natives. Non-Muslim ethnic minorities departed Kazakhstan in large numbers from the mid-1990s through the mid-2000s and a national program has repatriated about a million ethnic Kazakhs back to Kazakhstan. These trends have allowed Kazakhs to become the titular majority again. This dramatic demographic shift has also undermined the previous religious diversity and made the country more than 70 percent Muslim. Kazakhstan's economy is larger than those of all the other Central Asian states largely due to the country's vast natural resources. Current issues include: developing a cohesive national identity; managing Islamic revivalism; expanding the development of the country's vast energy resources and exporting them to world markets; diversifying the economy outside the oil, gas, and mining sectors; enhancing Kazakhstan's economic competitiveness; developing a multiparty parliament and advancing political and social reform; and strengthening relations with neighboring states and other foreign powers.
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How big is Kazakhstan compared to Jamaica? See an in-depth size comparison.

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