If you lived in British Virgin Islands instead of Papua New Guinea, you would:

Health

live 11.2 years longer

In Papua New Guinea, the average life expectancy is 66 years (64 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2024. In British Virgin Islands, that number is 77 years (75 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024.

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Life

be 63.6% less likely to die during infancy

In Papua New Guinea, approximately 31.3 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In British Virgin Islands, on the other hand, 11.4 children do as of 2024.

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have 66.2% fewer children

In Papua New Guinea, there are approximately 24.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In British Virgin Islands, there are 8.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 4.9 times more likely to have access to electricity

In Papua New Guinea, approximately 20% of people have electricity access (65% in urban areas, and 13% in rural areas) as of 2023. In British Virgin Islands, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 4.1 times more likely to have internet access

In Papua New Guinea, approximately 18.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In British Virgin Islands, about 77.7% do as of 2021.

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be 87.4% more likely to have access to drinking water

In Papua New Guinea, approximately 53% of people have access to drinking water as of 2024. In British Virgin Islands, 100% of people do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 4.1 times more on education

Papua New Guinea spends 0.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. British Virgin Islands spends 3.2% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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Geography

see 98.4% less coastline

Papua New Guinea has a total of 5,152 km of coastline. In British Virgin Islands, that number is 80 km.

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Infrastructure

find 108.3 times more home broadband

Papua New Guinea has 0.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. British Virgin Islands has 24.9 as of 2024.

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Environment

emit 4.5 times more CO2

Papua New Guinea emits 0.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. British Virgin Islands emits 2.3 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2023–2024), The World Factbook (2021). How we calculate this

British Virgin Islands: At a glance

British Virgin Islands (sometimes abbreviated BVI) is a sovereign country in Central America/Caribbean, with a total land area of approximately 151 sq km. First inhabited by Arawak and later by Carib Indians, the Virgin Islands were settled by the Dutch in 1648 and then annexed by the English in 1672. The islands were part of the British colony of the Leeward Islands from 1872-1960; they were granted autonomy in 1967. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency.
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How big is British Virgin Islands compared to Papua New Guinea? See an in-depth size comparison.

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