Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Burkina Faso instead of Rwanda, you would:
Health
be 75.0% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Rwanda, 2.0% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, that number is 0.5% of people as of 2024.
see 26.5% more spent on your healthcare
Rwanda spends $177 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Burkina Faso spends $224 as of 2023.
have 64.4% more doctors per person
Rwanda has 0.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Burkina Faso has 1.5 as of 2022.
live 6.7 years less
In Rwanda, the average life expectancy is 68 years (66 years for men, 70 years for women) as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, that number is 61 years (59 years for men, 63 years for women) as of 2024.
be 37.8% more likely to be obese
In Rwanda, 5.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, that number is 7.7% of people as of 2024.
have 18.4% less access to essential health services
Rwanda scores 49 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Burkina Faso scores 40 as of 2021.
Economy
be 69.4% less likely to be unemployed
In Rwanda, 11.4% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Burkina Faso, that number is 3.5% as of 2025.
be 57.7% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Rwanda, 27.4% live below the poverty line as of 2023. In Burkina Faso, however, that number is 43.2% as of 2021.
Life
have 11.7% more children
In Rwanda, there are approximately 28.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, there are 31.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 47.2% less likely to be literate
In Rwanda, the literacy rate is 78.8% as of 2022. In Burkina Faso, it is 41.6% as of 2023.
be 48.3% more likely to die during infancy
In Rwanda, approximately 29.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, on the other hand, 43.6 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 66.0% less likely to have access to electricity
In Rwanda, approximately 64% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 58% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Burkina Faso, that number is 22% of people on average (63% in urban areas, and 2% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 10.9% less likely to have internet access
In Rwanda, approximately 31.7% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, about 28.2% do as of 2024.
be 18.6% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Rwanda, approximately 61% of people have access to drinking water (88% in urban areas, and 56% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, that number is 50% of people on average (81% in urban areas, and 34% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 15.6% more on education
Rwanda spends 4.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Burkina Faso spends 5.3% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 52.0% more on healthcare
Rwanda spends 5.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Burkina Faso, that number is 7.8% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 65.4% less likely to be murdered
Rwanda has a homicide rate of 3.6 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Burkina Faso, that number is 1.2 per 100,000 as of 2017.
be 2.4 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Rwanda, road accidents kill 11.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Burkina Faso, they kill 27.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 41.7% more home broadband
Rwanda has 0.6 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Burkina Faso has 0.8 as of 2024.
live with 61.3% less strain on fresh water
Rwanda withdraws 20% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Burkina Faso withdraws 8% as of 2022.
use 73.9% more electricity
Rwanda uses 77 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Burkina Faso uses 133 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 35.5% more likely to die from air pollution
In Rwanda, air pollution causes 62.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Burkina Faso, it causes 84.0 as of 2019.
emit 68.8% more CO2
Rwanda emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Burkina Faso emits 0.3 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2017–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Rwanda vs. Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso: At a glance
How big is Burkina Faso compared to Rwanda? See an in-depth size comparison.