If you lived in Ethiopia instead of Palau, you would:

Health

be 92.8% less likely to be obese

In Palau, 40.5% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Ethiopia, that number is 2.9% of people as of 2024.

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live 1.8 years less

In Palau, the average life expectancy is 69 years (67 years for men, 72 years for women) as of 2024. In Ethiopia, that number is 68 years (64 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 95.4% less spent on your healthcare

Palau spends $1,857 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Ethiopia spends $86 as of 2023.

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have 92.1% fewer doctors per person

Palau has 18.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Ethiopia has 1.4 as of 2023.

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have 46.2% less access to essential health services

Palau scores 65 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Ethiopia scores 35 as of 2021.

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Economy

make 95.2% less money

Palau has a GDP per capita of $19,532 as of 2025, while in Ethiopia, the GDP per capita is $933 as of 2025.

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Life

have 2.9 times more children

In Palau, there are approximately 10.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Ethiopia, there are 31.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 2.2 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Palau, approximately 89.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Ethiopia, 195.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 39.4% less likely to be literate

In Palau, the literacy rate is 99.8% as of 2020. In Ethiopia, it is 60.5% as of 2022.

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be 85.5% more likely to die during infancy

In Palau, approximately 18.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Ethiopia, on the other hand, 34.5 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 44.6% less likely to have access to electricity

In Palau, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Ethiopia, that number is 55% of people on average (95% in urban areas, and 44% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 73.9% less likely to have internet access

In Palau, approximately 83.9% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Ethiopia, about 21.9% do as of 2024.

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be 44.1% less likely to have access to drinking water

In Palau, approximately 100% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 99% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Ethiopia, that number is 56% of people on average (83% in urban areas, and 47% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 33.1% less on education

Palau spends 3.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Ethiopia spends 2.3% of total GDP on education as of 2024.

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spend 74.2% less on healthcare

Palau spends 10.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Ethiopia, that number is 2.8% of GDP as of 2023.

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Safety

be 20.3% less likely to die in a road accident

In Palau, road accidents kill 22.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Ethiopia, they kill 17.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 92.0% less home broadband

Palau has 7.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Ethiopia has 0.6 as of 2024.

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Environment

emit 99.8% less CO2

Palau emits 82.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Ethiopia emits 0.1 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this

Ethiopia: At a glance

Ethiopia is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 1,096,570 sq km. Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy maintained its freedom from colonial rule with the exception of a short-lived Italian occupation from 1936-41. In 1974, a military junta, the Derg, deposed Emperor Haile SELASSIE (who had ruled since 1930) and established a socialist state. Torn by bloody coups, uprisings, wide-scale drought, and massive refugee problems, the regime was finally toppled in 1991 by a coalition of rebel forces, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). A constitution was adopted in 1994, and Ethiopia's first multiparty elections were held in 1995. A border war with Eritrea late in the 1990s ended with a peace treaty in December 2000. In November 2007, the Eritrea-Ethiopia Border Commission (EEBC) issued specific coordinates as virtually demarcating the border and pronounced its work finished. Alleging that the EEBC acted beyond its mandate in issuing the coordinates, Ethiopia has not accepted them and has not withdrawn troops from previously contested areas pronounced by the EEBC as belonging to Eritrea. In August 2012, longtime leader Prime Minister MELES Zenawi died in office and was replaced by his Deputy Prime Minister HAILEMARIAM Desalegn, marking the first peaceful transition of power in decades.
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