If you lived in Papua New Guinea instead of Libya, you would:

Health

be 16.8% less likely to be obese

In Libya, 33.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 28.0% of people as of 2024.

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be 63.6% less likely to die by suicide

Libya has a suicide rate of 5.0 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, it is 1.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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be 15.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Libya, 0.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 1.5% of people as of 2024.

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live 4.9 years less

In Libya, the average life expectancy is 71 years (70 years for men, 73 years for women) as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 66 years (64 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 87.4% less spent on your healthcare

Libya spends $1,055 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Papua New Guinea spends $133 as of 2023.

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have 51.6% less access to essential health services

Libya scores 62 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Papua New Guinea scores 30 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 86.3% less likely to be unemployed

In Libya, 18.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.6% as of 2025.

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make 53.2% less money

Libya has a GDP per capita of $6,449 as of 2025, while in Papua New Guinea, the GDP per capita is $3,020 as of 2025.

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Life

have 47.2% more children

In Libya, there are approximately 16.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, there are 24.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 3.2 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Libya, approximately 59.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, 189.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 4.0 times more likely to die during infancy

In Libya, approximately 7.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, on the other hand, 31.3 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 72.0% less likely to have access to electricity

In Libya, approximately 73% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 96% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 20% of people on average (65% in urban areas, and 13% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 77.0% less likely to have internet access

In Libya, approximately 82.0% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, about 18.8% do as of 2024.

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be 44.7% less likely to have access to drinking water

In Libya, approximately 96% of people have access to drinking water as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, 53% of people do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 63.3% less on healthcare

Libya spends 7.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.9% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 2.9 times more coastline

Libya has a total of 1,770 km of coastline. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 5,152 km.

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Safety

be 56.2% less likely to die in a road accident

In Libya, road accidents kill 34.0 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, they kill 14.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

live with 100.0% less strain on fresh water

Libya withdraws 817% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Papua New Guinea withdraws 0% as of 2022.

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find 94.9% less home broadband

Libya has 4.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Papua New Guinea has 0.2 as of 2024.

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Environment

be 29.6% less likely to die from air pollution

In Libya, air pollution causes 54.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Papua New Guinea, it causes 38.0 as of 2019.

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emit 94.0% less CO2

Libya emits 8.7 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Papua New Guinea emits 0.5 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. How we calculate this

Papua New Guinea: At a glance

Papua New Guinea (sometimes abbreviated PNG) is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 452,860 sq km. The eastern half of the island of New Guinea - second largest in the world - was divided between Germany (north) and the UK (south) in 1885. The latter area was transferred to Australia in 1902, which occupied the northern portion during World War I and continued to administer the combined areas until independence in 1975. A nine-year secessionist revolt on the island of Bougainville ended in 1997 after claiming some 20,000 lives.
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How big is Papua New Guinea compared to Libya? See an in-depth size comparison.

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