Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Papua New Guinea instead of Malawi, you would:
Health
be 88.9% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Malawi, 8.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 0.9% of people as of 2020.
live 3.0 years less
In Malawi, the average life expectancy is 72 years (69 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2022. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 69 years (68 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2022.
be 3.7 times more likely to be obese
In Malawi, 5.8% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 21.3% of people as of 2016.
Economy
make 2.7 times more money
Malawi has a GDP per capita of $1,500 as of 2020, while in Papua New Guinea, the GDP per capita is $4,100 as of 2020.
be 87.7% less likely to be unemployed
In Malawi, 20.4% of adults are unemployed as of 2013. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.5% as of 2017.
be 28.2% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Malawi, 51.5% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In Papua New Guinea, however, that number is 37.0% as of 2002.
pay a 40.0% higher top tax rate
Malawi has a top tax rate of 30.0% as of 2016. In Papua New Guinea, the top tax rate is 42.0% as of 2016.
Life
be 58.5% less likely to die during childbirth
In Malawi, approximately 349.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In Papua New Guinea, 145.0 women do as of 2017.
Basic Needs
be 4.5 times more likely to have access to electricity
In Malawi, approximately 13% of people have electricity access (55% in urban areas, and 5% in rural areas) as of 2019. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 59% of people on average (82% in urban areas, and 55% in rural areas) as of 2018.
be 21.4% less likely to have internet access
In Malawi, approximately 14.0% of the population has internet access as of 2019. In Papua New Guinea, about 11.0% do as of 2019.
be 48.4% less likely to have access to improved drinking water
In Malawi, approximately 92% of people have improved drinking water access (97% in urban areas, and 91% in rural areas) as of 2020. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 48% of people on average (86% in urban areas, and 42% in rural areas) as of 2020.
Expenditures
spend 34.5% less on education
Malawi spends 2.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Papua New Guinea spends 1.9% of total GDP on education as of 2018.
spend 68.9% less on healthcare
Malawi spends 7.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2019. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.3% of GDP as of 2019.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Malawi Revenue Authority, The World Factbook, Internal Revenue Commission, Papua New Guinea.
Papua New Guinea: At a glance
How big is Papua New Guinea compared to Malawi? See an in-depth size comparison.