If you lived in Papua New Guinea instead of Philippines, you would:

Health

be 47.9% less likely to die by suicide

Philippines has a suicide rate of 3.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, it is 1.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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be 5.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Philippines, 0.3% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 1.5% of people as of 2024.

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live 3.7 years less

In Philippines, the average life expectancy is 70 years (67 years for men, 73 years for women) as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 66 years (64 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 2.9 times more likely to be obese

In Philippines, 9.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 28.0% of people as of 2024.

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see 76.3% less spent on your healthcare

Philippines spends $560 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Papua New Guinea spends $133 as of 2023.

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have 92.3% fewer doctors per person

Philippines has 7.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. Papua New Guinea has 0.6 as of 2023.

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have 48.3% less access to essential health services

Philippines scores 58 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Papua New Guinea scores 30 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 15.2% more likely to be unemployed

In Philippines, 2.2% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.6% as of 2025.

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make 27.6% less money

Philippines has a GDP per capita of $4,171 as of 2025, while in Papua New Guinea, the GDP per capita is $3,020 as of 2025.

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Life

have 52.9% more children

In Philippines, there are approximately 15.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, there are 24.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 2.2 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Philippines, approximately 84.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, 189.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 11.6% less likely to be literate

In Philippines, the literacy rate is 98.5% as of 2020. In Papua New Guinea, it is 87.0% as of 2022.

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be 44.2% more likely to die during infancy

In Philippines, approximately 21.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, on the other hand, 31.3 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 79.1% less likely to have access to electricity

In Philippines, approximately 98% of people have electricity access (98% in urban areas, and 98% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 20% of people on average (65% in urban areas, and 13% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 72.0% less likely to have internet access

In Philippines, approximately 67.3% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, about 18.8% do as of 2024.

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be 44.4% less likely to have access to drinking water

In Philippines, approximately 96% of people have access to drinking water (98% in urban areas, and 94% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 53% of people on average (84% in urban areas, and 48% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 80.4% less on education

Philippines spends 4.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2025. Papua New Guinea spends 0.8% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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spend 43.7% less on healthcare

Philippines spends 5.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.9% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 85.8% less coastline

Philippines has a total of 36,289 km of coastline. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 5,152 km.

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Safety

be 53.6% more likely to die in a road accident

In Philippines, road accidents kill 9.7 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, they kill 14.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

live with 99.5% less strain on fresh water

Philippines withdraws 28% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Papua New Guinea withdraws 0% as of 2022.

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find 96.8% less home broadband

Philippines has 7.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Papua New Guinea has 0.2 as of 2024.

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Environment

be 58.7% less likely to die from air pollution

In Philippines, air pollution causes 92.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Papua New Guinea, it causes 38.0 as of 2019.

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emit 65.3% less CO2

Philippines emits 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Papua New Guinea emits 0.5 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this

Papua New Guinea: At a glance

Papua New Guinea (sometimes abbreviated PNG) is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 452,860 sq km. The eastern half of the island of New Guinea - second largest in the world - was divided between Germany (north) and the UK (south) in 1885. The latter area was transferred to Australia in 1902, which occupied the northern portion during World War I and continued to administer the combined areas until independence in 1975. A nine-year secessionist revolt on the island of Bougainville ended in 1997 after claiming some 20,000 lives.
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How big is Papua New Guinea compared to Philippines? See an in-depth size comparison.

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