Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Lesotho instead of Mali, you would:
Health
see 3.7 times more spent on your healthcare
Mali spends $104 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Lesotho spends $386 as of 2023.
have 25.0% more doctors per person
Mali has 1.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Lesotho has 2.4 as of 2022.
have 29.3% more access to essential health services
Mali scores 41 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Lesotho scores 53 as of 2021.
be 21.4 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Mali, 0.8% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 17.1% of people as of 2024.
live 2.9 years less
In Mali, the average life expectancy is 61 years (59 years for men, 62 years for women) as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 58 years (55 years for men, 60 years for women) as of 2024.
be 67.2% more likely to be obese
In Mali, 13.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 22.2% of people as of 2024.
be 6.9 times more likely to die by suicide
Mali has a suicide rate of 4.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Lesotho, it is 28.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 5.8 times more likely to be unemployed
In Mali, 2.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Lesotho, that number is 16.3% as of 2025.
Life
be 2.5 times more likely to be literate
In Mali, the literacy rate is 35.6% as of 2024. In Lesotho, it is 90.5% as of 2024.
be 30.2% 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 Lesotho, 478.0 women do as of 2023.
be 18.5% more likely to die during infancy
In Mali, approximately 47.5 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Lesotho, on the other hand, 56.3 children do as of 2024.
have 39.9% fewer children
In Mali, there are approximately 39.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Lesotho, there are 23.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 40.8% more likely to have internet access
In Mali, approximately 36.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Lesotho, about 51.8% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 58.4% more on education
Mali spends 4.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Lesotho spends 6.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
spend 3.3 times more on healthcare
Mali spends 3.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Lesotho, that number is 12.6% of GDP as of 2023.
Infrastructure
live with 67.9% less strain on fresh water
Mali withdraws 8% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Lesotho withdraws 3% as of 2022.
find 50.6% less home broadband
Mali has 0.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Lesotho has 0.4 as of 2024.
Environment
be 53.8% more likely to die from air pollution
In Mali, air pollution causes 65.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Lesotho, it causes 100.0 as of 2019.
emit 43.3% more CO2
Mali emits 0.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Lesotho emits 0.4 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Mali vs. Lesotho
Lesotho: At a glance
How big is Lesotho compared to Mali? See an in-depth size comparison.