Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Ethiopia instead of Lesotho, you would:

Health

be 95.7% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Lesotho, 21.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In Ethiopia, that number is 0.9% of people as of 2020.

live 8.7 years longer

In Lesotho, the average life expectancy is 60 years (58 years for men, 62 years for women) as of 2022. In Ethiopia, that number is 68 years (66 years for men, 70 years for women) as of 2022.

be 72.9% less likely to be obese

In Lesotho, 16.6% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Ethiopia, that number is 4.5% of people as of 2016.

Economy

be 37.7% less likely to be unemployed

In Lesotho, 28.1% of adults are unemployed as of 2014. In Ethiopia, that number is 17.5% as of 2012.

be 52.7% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Lesotho, 49.7% live below the poverty line as of 2017. In Ethiopia, however, that number is 23.5% as of 2015.

pay a 16.7% higher top tax rate

Lesotho has a top tax rate of 30.0% as of 2016. In Ethiopia, the top tax rate is 35.0% as of 2016.

Life

be 26.3% less likely to die during childbirth

In Lesotho, approximately 544.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In Ethiopia, 401.0 women do as of 2017.

be 30.8% less likely to die during infancy

In Lesotho, approximately 48.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Ethiopia, on the other hand, 33.5 children do as of 2022.

have 31.7% more children

In Lesotho, there are approximately 23.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022. In Ethiopia, there are 30.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.

be 34.8% less likely to be literate

In Lesotho, the literacy rate is 79.4% as of 2015. In Ethiopia, it is 51.8% as of 2017.

Basic Needs

be 30.6% more likely to have access to electricity

In Lesotho, approximately 36% of people have electricity access (63% in urban areas, and 26% in rural areas) as of 2019. In Ethiopia, that number is 47% of people on average (96% in urban areas, and 34% in rural areas) as of 2019.

be 44.2% less likely to have internet access

In Lesotho, approximately 43.0% of the population has internet access as of 2020. In Ethiopia, about 24.0% do as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 31.1% less on education

Lesotho spends 7.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Ethiopia spends 5.1% of total GDP on education as of 2018.

spend 71.7% less on healthcare

Lesotho spends 11.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2019. In Ethiopia, that number is 3.2% of GDP as of 2019.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Ministry of Finance, Ethiopian Revenues and Customs Authority.

Ethiopia: At a glance

Ethiopia is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 1,096,570 sq km. Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy maintained its freedom from colonial rule with the exception of a short-lived Italian occupation from 1936-41. In 1974, a military junta, the Derg, deposed Emperor Haile SELASSIE (who had ruled since 1930) and established a socialist state. Torn by bloody coups, uprisings, wide-scale drought, and massive refugee problems, the regime was finally toppled in 1991 by a coalition of rebel forces, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). A constitution was adopted in 1994, and Ethiopia's first multiparty elections were held in 1995. A border war with Eritrea late in the 1990s ended with a peace treaty in December 2000. In November 2007, the Eritrea-Ethiopia Border Commission (EEBC) issued specific coordinates as virtually demarcating the border and pronounced its work finished. Alleging that the EEBC acted beyond its mandate in issuing the coordinates, Ethiopia has not accepted them and has not withdrawn troops from previously contested areas pronounced by the EEBC as belonging to Eritrea. In August 2012, longtime leader Prime Minister MELES Zenawi died in office and was replaced by his Deputy Prime Minister HAILEMARIAM Desalegn, marking the first peaceful transition of power in decades.
Read more

How big is Ethiopia compared to Lesotho? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Ethiopia.or Lesotho It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.