If you lived in Lesotho instead of Saint Lucia, you would:

Health

be 36.1% less likely to be obese

In Saint Lucia, 34.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 22.2% of people as of 2024.

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be 42.8 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Saint Lucia, 0.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 17.1% of people as of 2024.

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live 15.0 years less

In Saint Lucia, the average life expectancy is 73 years (69 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 58 years (55 years for men, 60 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 68.6% less spent on your healthcare

Saint Lucia spends $1,228 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Lesotho spends $386 as of 2023.

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have 94.4% fewer doctors per person

Saint Lucia has 42.3 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2020. Lesotho has 2.4 as of 2022.

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have 31.2% less access to essential health services

Saint Lucia scores 77 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Lesotho scores 53 as of 2021.

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be 5.4 times more likely to die by suicide

Saint Lucia has a suicide rate of 5.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Lesotho, it is 28.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 72.7% more likely to be unemployed

In Saint Lucia, 9.4% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Lesotho, that number is 16.3% as of 2025.

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be 98.8% more likely to live below the poverty line

In Saint Lucia, 25.0% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In Lesotho, however, that number is 49.7% as of 2017.

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make 92.6% less money

Saint Lucia has a GDP per capita of $14,746 as of 2025, while in Lesotho, the GDP per capita is $1,089 as of 2025.

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Life

have 2.1 times more children

In Saint Lucia, there are approximately 11.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Lesotho, there are 23.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 10.9 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Saint Lucia, approximately 44.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Lesotho, 478.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 3.6 times more likely to die during infancy

In Saint Lucia, approximately 15.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Lesotho, on the other hand, 56.3 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 42.7% less likely to have access to electricity

In Saint Lucia, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Lesotho, that number is 57% of people on average (85% in urban areas, and 45% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 24.1% less likely to have internet access

In Saint Lucia, approximately 68.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Lesotho, about 51.8% do as of 2024.

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be 20.4% less likely to have access to drinking water

In Saint Lucia, approximately 98% of people have access to drinking water (97% in urban areas, and 98% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 78% of people on average (95% in urban areas, and 71% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 71.9% more on education

Saint Lucia spends 3.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Lesotho spends 6.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.

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spend 2.7 times more on healthcare

Saint Lucia spends 4.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Lesotho, that number is 12.6% of GDP as of 2023.

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Safety

be 2.4 times more likely to die in a road accident

In Saint Lucia, road accidents kill 8.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Lesotho, they kill 21.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

live with 82.0% less strain on fresh water

Saint Lucia withdraws 14% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Lesotho withdraws 3% as of 2022.

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find 97.2% less home broadband

Saint Lucia has 13.6 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Lesotho has 0.4 as of 2024.

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Environment

emit 74.9% less CO2

Saint Lucia emits 1.7 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Lesotho emits 0.4 tonnes as of 2024.

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be 5.0 times more likely to die from air pollution

In Saint Lucia, air pollution causes 20.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Lesotho, it causes 100.0 as of 2019.

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Sources: World Bank (2017–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2016). How we calculate this

Lesotho: At a glance

Lesotho is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 30,355 sq km. Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. The Basuto National Party ruled the country during its first two decades. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990, but returned to Lesotho in 1992 and was reinstated in 1995 and subsequently succeeded by his son, King LETSIE III, in 1996. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after seven years of military rule. In 1998, violent protests and a military mutiny following a contentious election prompted a brief but bloody intervention by South African and Batswana military forces under the aegis of the Southern African Development Community. Subsequent constitutional reforms restored relative political stability. Peaceful parliamentary elections were held in 2002, but the National Assembly elections of February 2007 were hotly contested and aggrieved parties disputed how the electoral law was applied to award proportional seats in the Assembly. In May 2012, competitive elections involving 18 parties saw Prime Minister Motsoahae Thomas THABANE form a coalition government - the first in the country's history - that ousted the 14-year incumbent, Pakalitha MOSISILI, who peacefully transferred power the following month.
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