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

Health

be 93.0% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Lesotho, 17.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Nigeria, that number is 1.2% of people as of 2024.

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be 38.5% less likely to be obese

In Lesotho, 22.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Nigeria, that number is 13.7% of people as of 2024.

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have 61.7% more doctors per person

Lesotho has 2.4 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Nigeria has 3.8 as of 2023.

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be 82.6% less likely to die by suicide

Lesotho has a suicide rate of 28.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Nigeria, it is 5.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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live 3.2 years less

In Lesotho, the average life expectancy is 58 years (55 years for men, 60 years for women) as of 2024. In Nigeria, that number is 55 years (54 years for men, 55 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 32.5% less spent on your healthcare

Lesotho spends $386 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Nigeria spends $260 as of 2023.

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have 28.3% less access to essential health services

Lesotho scores 53 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Nigeria scores 38 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 81.2% less likely to be unemployed

In Lesotho, 16.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Nigeria, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.

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make 12.4% more money

Lesotho has a GDP per capita of $1,089 as of 2025, while in Nigeria, the GDP per capita is $1,224 as of 2025.

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Life

have 36.7% more children

In Lesotho, there are approximately 23.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Nigeria, there are 32.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 2.1 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Lesotho, approximately 478.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Nigeria, 993.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 22.2% less likely to be literate

In Lesotho, the literacy rate is 90.5% as of 2024. In Nigeria, it is 70.4% as of 2024.

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be 24.0% more likely to die during infancy

In Lesotho, approximately 56.3 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Nigeria, on the other hand, 69.8 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 20.4% less likely to have internet access

In Lesotho, approximately 51.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Nigeria, about 41.2% do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 95.2% less on education

Lesotho spends 6.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Nigeria spends 0.3% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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spend 66.8% less on healthcare

Lesotho spends 12.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Nigeria, that number is 4.2% of GDP as of 2023.

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Safety

be 20.4% less likely to die in a road accident

In Lesotho, road accidents kill 21.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Nigeria, they kill 17.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 78.9% less home broadband

Lesotho has 0.4 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Nigeria has 0.1 as of 2024.

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live with 3.8 times more strain on fresh water

Lesotho withdraws 3% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Nigeria withdraws 10% as of 2022.

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Environment

be 23.0% less likely to die from air pollution

In Lesotho, air pollution causes 100.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Nigeria, it causes 77.0 as of 2019.

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emit 32.6% more CO2

Lesotho emits 0.4 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Nigeria emits 0.6 tonnes as of 2024.

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

Nigeria: At a glance

Nigeria is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 910,768 sq km. British influence and control over what would become Nigeria and Africa's most populous country grew through the 19th century. A series of constitutions after World War II granted Nigeria greater autonomy; independence came in 1960. Following nearly 16 years of military rule, a new constitution was adopted in 1999, and a peaceful transition to civilian government was completed. The government continues to face the daunting task of reforming a petroleum-based economy, whose revenues have been squandered through corruption and mismanagement, and institutionalizing democracy. In addition, Nigeria continues to experience longstanding ethnic and religious tensions. Although both the 2003 and 2007 presidential elections were marred by significant irregularities and violence, Nigeria is currently experiencing its longest period of civilian rule since independence. The general elections of April 2007 marked the first civilian-to-civilian transfer of power in the country's history and the elections of 2011 were generally regarded as credible. In January 2014, Nigeria assumed a nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2014-15 term.
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