If you lived in Mauritania instead of Republic of the Congo, you would:

Health

be 96.9% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Republic of the Congo, 3.2% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 0.1% of people as of 2024.

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live 2.7 years longer

In Republic of the Congo, the average life expectancy is 66 years (64 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 44.5% more spent on your healthcare

Republic of the Congo spends $209 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Mauritania spends $302 as of 2023.

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have 50.9% more doctors per person

Republic of the Congo has 1.7 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Mauritania has 2.6 as of 2022.

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be 59.6% less likely to die by suicide

Republic of the Congo has a suicide rate of 6.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Mauritania, it is 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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be 97.5% more likely to be obese

In Republic of the Congo, 12.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 24.1% of people as of 2024.

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Economy

be 48.1% less likely to be unemployed

In Republic of the Congo, 19.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Mauritania, that number is 10.3% as of 2025.

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make 12.6% less money

Republic of the Congo has a GDP per capita of $2,515 as of 2025, while in Mauritania, the GDP per capita is $2,198 as of 2025.

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Life

have 11.9% more children

In Republic of the Congo, there are approximately 30.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Mauritania, there are 34.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 58.1% more likely to die during childbirth

In Republic of the Congo, approximately 241.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Mauritania, 381.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 16.9% less likely to be literate

In Republic of the Congo, the literacy rate is 80.6% as of 2021. In Mauritania, it is 67.0% as of 2021.

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be 11.9% more likely to die during infancy

In Republic of the Congo, approximately 27.0 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Mauritania, on the other hand, 30.2 children do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 2.3 times more on education

Republic of the Congo spends 3.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Mauritania spends 7.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.

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spend 31.5% more on healthcare

Republic of the Congo spends 3.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Mauritania, that number is 4.3% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 4.5 times more coastline

Republic of the Congo has a total of 169 km of coastline. In Mauritania, that number is 754 km.

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Safety

be 13.1% more likely to die in a road accident

In Republic of the Congo, road accidents kill 8.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Mauritania, they kill 9.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 25.2% less home broadband

Republic of the Congo has 1.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Mauritania has 0.9 as of 2024.

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live with 441.7 times more strain on fresh water

Republic of the Congo withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Mauritania withdraws 13% as of 2022.

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Environment

emit 27.6% less CO2

Republic of the Congo emits 1.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Mauritania emits 1.0 tonnes as of 2024.

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

Mauritania: At a glance

Mauritania is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 1,030,700 sq km. Independent from France in 1960, Mauritania annexed the southern third of the former Spanish Sahara (now Western Sahara) in 1976 but relinquished it after three years of raids by the Polisario guerrilla front seeking independence for the territory. Maaouya Ould Sid Ahmed TAYA seized power in a coup in 1984 and ruled Mauritania with a heavy hand for more than two decades. A series of presidential elections that he held were widely seen as flawed. A bloodless coup in August 2005 deposed President TAYA and ushered in a military council that oversaw a transition to democratic rule. Independent candidate Sidi Ould Cheikh ABDALLAHI was inaugurated in April 2007 as Mauritania's first freely and fairly elected president. His term ended prematurely in August 2008 when a military junta led by General Mohamed Ould Abdel AZIZ deposed him and installed a military council government. AZIZ was subsequently elected president in July 2009 and sworn in the following month. AZIZ sustained injuries from an accidental shooting by his own troops in October 2012 but has continued to maintain his authority. The country continues to experience ethnic tensions among its black population (Afro-Mauritanians) and white and black Moor (Arab-Berber) communities, and confronts a terrorism threat by al-Qa'ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).
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