Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Lesotho instead of Panama, you would:
Health
be 41.1% less likely to be obese
In Panama, 37.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 22.2% of people as of 2024.
be 15.5 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Panama, 1.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 17.1% of people as of 2024.
live 22.0 years less
In Panama, the average life expectancy is 80 years (77 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 58 years (55 years for men, 60 years for women) as of 2024.
see 88.4% less spent on your healthcare
Panama spends $3,318 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Lesotho spends $386 as of 2023.
have 85.5% fewer doctors per person
Panama has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Lesotho has 2.4 as of 2022.
have 32.1% less access to essential health services
Panama scores 78 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Lesotho scores 53 as of 2021.
be 8.7 times more likely to die by suicide
Panama has a suicide rate of 3.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Lesotho, it is 28.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 95.2% more likely to be unemployed
In Panama, 8.4% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Lesotho, that number is 16.3% as of 2025.
make 94.5% less money
Panama has a GDP per capita of $19,790 as of 2025, while in Lesotho, the GDP per capita is $1,089 as of 2025.
Life
have 49.7% more children
In Panama, there are approximately 15.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Lesotho, there are 23.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 12.9 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Panama, approximately 37.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Lesotho, 478.0 women do as of 2023.
be 4.7 times more likely to die during infancy
In Panama, approximately 12.0 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.
Basic Needs
be 40.9% less likely to have access to electricity
In Panama, approximately 97% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 91% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Lesotho, that number is 57% of people on average (85% in urban areas, and 45% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 28.8% less likely to have internet access
In Panama, approximately 72.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Lesotho, about 51.8% do as of 2024.
be 18.0% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Panama, approximately 95% of people have access to drinking water (98% in urban areas, and 88% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 78% of people on average (95% in urban areas, and 71% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 2.7 times more on education
Panama spends 2.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Lesotho spends 6.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
spend 51.4% more on healthcare
Panama spends 8.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Lesotho, that number is 12.6% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 3.0 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Panama, road accidents kill 7.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Lesotho, they kill 21.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 97.9% less home broadband
Panama has 18.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Lesotho has 0.4 as of 2024.
live with 2.9 times more strain on fresh water
Panama withdraws 1% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Lesotho withdraws 3% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 84.3% less CO2
Panama emits 2.7 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Lesotho emits 0.4 tonnes as of 2024.
be 5.9 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Panama, air pollution causes 17.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Lesotho, it causes 100.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Panama vs. Lesotho
Lesotho: At a glance
How big is Lesotho compared to Panama? See an in-depth size comparison.