Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Afghanistan instead of Mali, you would:
Health
live 5.6 years longer
In Mali, the average life expectancy is 61 years (59 years for men, 62 years for women) as of 2024. In Afghanistan, that number is 66 years (65 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2024.
see 3.2 times more spent on your healthcare
Mali spends $104 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Afghanistan spends $330 as of 2023.
have 68.6% more doctors per person
Mali has 1.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Afghanistan has 3.2 as of 2023.
be 13.5% less likely to die by suicide
Mali has a suicide rate of 4.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Afghanistan, it is 3.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 54.8% more likely to be obese
In Mali, 13.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Afghanistan, that number is 20.6% of people as of 2024.
Economy
be 4.7 times more likely to be unemployed
In Mali, 2.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Afghanistan, that number is 13.3% as of 2025.
make 65.1% less money
Mali has a GDP per capita of $1,193 as of 2025, while in Afghanistan, the GDP per capita is $417 as of 2024.
Life
be 42.0% more likely to die during childbirth
In Mali, approximately 367.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Afghanistan, 521.0 women do as of 2023.
have 11.4% fewer children
In Mali, there are approximately 39.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Afghanistan, there are 35.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 56.5% more likely to have access to electricity
In Mali, approximately 54% of people have electricity access (92% in urban areas, and 23% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Afghanistan, that number is 85% of people on average (96% in urban areas, and 81% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 56.3% less likely to have internet access
In Mali, approximately 36.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Afghanistan, about 16.1% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 30.6% less on education
Mali spends 4.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Afghanistan spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2020.
spend 3.9 times more on healthcare
Mali spends 3.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Afghanistan, that number is 15.0% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 19.3% more likely to die in a road accident
In Mali, road accidents kill 20.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Afghanistan, they kill 24.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 89.6% less home broadband
Mali has 0.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Afghanistan has 0.1 as of 2023.
live with 6.8 times more strain on fresh water
Mali withdraws 8% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Afghanistan withdraws 55% as of 2022.
Environment
be 2.2 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Mali, air pollution causes 65.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Afghanistan, it causes 143.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2020). How we calculate this
Compare further: Mali vs. Afghanistan
Afghanistan: At a glance
How big is Afghanistan compared to Mali? See an in-depth size comparison.