Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Afghanistan instead of Namibia, you would:
Health
be 98.9% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Namibia, 9.0% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Afghanistan, that number is 0.1% of people as of 2024.
be 58.1% less likely to die by suicide
Namibia has a suicide rate of 8.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Afghanistan, it is 3.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 1.2 years less
In Namibia, the average life expectancy is 68 years (63 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024. In Afghanistan, that number is 66 years (65 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2024.
be 12.7% more likely to be obese
In Namibia, 18.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Afghanistan, that number is 20.6% of people as of 2024.
see 69.1% less spent on your healthcare
Namibia spends $1,068 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Afghanistan spends $330 as of 2023.
have 42.7% fewer doctors per person
Namibia has 5.5 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Afghanistan has 3.2 as of 2023.
have 34.9% less access to essential health services
Namibia scores 63 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Afghanistan scores 41 as of 2021.
Economy
be 30.8% less likely to be unemployed
In Namibia, 19.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Afghanistan, that number is 13.3% as of 2025.
make 91.5% less money
Namibia has a GDP per capita of $4,876 as of 2025, while in Afghanistan, the GDP per capita is $417 as of 2024.
Life
have 35.2% more children
In Namibia, there are approximately 25.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Afghanistan, there are 35.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 3.7 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Namibia, approximately 139.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Afghanistan, 521.0 women do as of 2023.
be 57.5% less likely to be literate
In Namibia, the literacy rate is 87.6% as of 2023. In Afghanistan, it is 37.3% as of 2021.
be 32.7% more likely to die during infancy
In Namibia, approximately 36.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Afghanistan, on the other hand, 48.3 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 50.4% more likely to have access to electricity
In Namibia, approximately 57% of people have electricity access (75% in urban areas, and 34% 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 75.2% less likely to have internet access
In Namibia, approximately 64.9% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Afghanistan, about 16.1% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 58.1% more on healthcare
Namibia spends 9.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Afghanistan, that number is 15.0% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 64.0% less likely to be murdered
Namibia has a homicide rate of 11.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Afghanistan, that number is 4.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 97.2% less home broadband
Namibia has 2.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Afghanistan has 0.1 as of 2023.
live with 176.6 times more strain on fresh water
Namibia withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Afghanistan withdraws 55% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 76.7% less CO2
Namibia emits 1.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Afghanistan emits 0.3 tonnes as of 2024.
be 3.3 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Namibia, air pollution causes 43.0 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). How we calculate this
Compare further: Namibia vs. Afghanistan
Afghanistan: At a glance
How big is Afghanistan compared to Namibia? See an in-depth size comparison.