Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Papua New Guinea instead of Republic of the Congo, you would:
Health
be 53.1% 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 Papua New Guinea, that number is 1.5% of people as of 2024.
be 72.9% 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 Papua New Guinea, it is 1.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 2.3 times more likely to be obese
In Republic of the Congo, 12.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 28.0% of people as of 2024.
see 36.3% less spent on your healthcare
Republic of the Congo spends $209 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Papua New Guinea spends $133 as of 2023.
have 64.7% fewer doctors per person
Republic of the Congo has 1.7 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Papua New Guinea has 0.6 as of 2023.
have 26.8% less access to essential health services
Republic of the Congo scores 41 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Papua New Guinea scores 30 as of 2021.
Economy
be 87.1% less likely to be unemployed
In Republic of the Congo, 19.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.6% as of 2025.
make 20.1% more money
Republic of the Congo has a GDP per capita of $2,515 as of 2025, while in Papua New Guinea, the GDP per capita is $3,020 as of 2025.
Life
be 21.6% less 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 Papua New Guinea, 189.0 women do as of 2023.
be 15.9% 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 Papua New Guinea, on the other hand, 31.3 children do as of 2024.
have 20.2% fewer children
In Republic of the Congo, there are approximately 30.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, there are 24.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 60.0% less likely to have access to electricity
In Republic of the Congo, approximately 51% of people have electricity access (69% in urban areas, and 11% 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.
be 60.2% less likely to have internet access
In Republic of the Congo, approximately 47.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, about 18.8% do as of 2024.
be 27.5% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Republic of the Congo, approximately 73% of people have access to drinking water (87% in urban areas, and 44% in rural areas) as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 53% of people on average (84% in urban areas, and 48% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 76.6% less on education
Republic of the Congo spends 3.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Papua New Guinea spends 0.8% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 13.0% less on healthcare
Republic of the Congo spends 3.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.9% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 30.5 times more coastline
Republic of the Congo has a total of 169 km of coastline. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 5,152 km.
Safety
be 77.4% 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 Papua New Guinea, they kill 14.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 81.9% less home broadband
Republic of the Congo has 1.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Papua New Guinea has 0.2 as of 2024.
live with 4.3 times more strain on fresh water
Republic of the Congo withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Papua New Guinea withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
be 42.4% less likely to die from air pollution
In Republic of the Congo, air pollution causes 66.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Papua New Guinea, it causes 38.0 as of 2019.
emit 61.2% less CO2
Republic of the Congo emits 1.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Papua New Guinea emits 0.5 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Republic of the Congo vs. Papua New Guinea
MORE COMPARISONS
Papua New Guinea: At a glance
How big is Papua New Guinea compared to Republic of the Congo? See an in-depth size comparison.