Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Cameroon instead of Mauritania, you would:
Health
be 33.4% less likely to be obese
In Mauritania, 24.1% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Cameroon, that number is 16.0% of people as of 2024.
have 10.0% more access to essential health services
Mauritania scores 40 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Cameroon scores 44 as of 2021.
be 25.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Mauritania, 0.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Cameroon, that number is 2.5% of people as of 2024.
live 4.7 years less
In Mauritania, the average life expectancy is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024. In Cameroon, that number is 64 years (62 years for men, 66 years for women) as of 2024.
see 18.4% less spent on your healthcare
Mauritania spends $302 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Cameroon spends $246 as of 2023.
have 47.9% fewer doctors per person
Mauritania has 2.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Cameroon has 1.4 as of 2022.
be 3.1 times more likely to die by suicide
Mauritania has a suicide rate of 2.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Cameroon, it is 8.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 65.1% less likely to be unemployed
In Mauritania, 10.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Cameroon, that number is 3.6% as of 2025.
be 18.6% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Mauritania, 31.8% live below the poverty line as of 2019. In Cameroon, however, that number is 37.7% as of 2021.
make 10.2% less money
Mauritania has a GDP per capita of $2,198 as of 2025, while in Cameroon, the GDP per capita is $1,972 as of 2025.
Life
be 32.3% less likely to die during childbirth
In Mauritania, approximately 381.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Cameroon, 258.0 women do as of 2023.
be 33.1% more likely to die during infancy
In Mauritania, approximately 30.2 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Cameroon, on the other hand, 40.2 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 43.1% more likely to have access to electricity
In Mauritania, approximately 50% of people have electricity access (94% in urban areas, and 1% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Cameroon, that number is 72% of people on average (96% in urban areas, and 26% in rural areas) as of 2023.
Expenditures
spend 62.7% less on education
Mauritania spends 7.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Cameroon spends 2.8% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Geography
see 46.7% less coastline
Mauritania has a total of 754 km of coastline. In Cameroon, that number is 402 km.
Safety
be 6.8 times more likely to be murdered
Mauritania has a homicide rate of 1.0 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Cameroon, that number is 6.8 per 100,000 as of 2022.
be 11.6% more likely to die in a road accident
In Mauritania, road accidents kill 9.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Cameroon, they kill 10.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 2.2 times more home broadband
Mauritania has 0.9 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Cameroon has 2.1 as of 2022.
live with 88.2% less strain on fresh water
Mauritania withdraws 13% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Cameroon withdraws 2% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 63.9% less CO2
Mauritania emits 1.0 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Cameroon emits 0.3 tonnes as of 2024.
be 62.9% more likely to die from air pollution
In Mauritania, air pollution causes 62.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Cameroon, it causes 101.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Mauritania vs. Cameroon
Cameroon: At a glance
How big is Cameroon compared to Mauritania? See an in-depth size comparison.