Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Belgium instead of Suriname, you would:
Health
be 87.5% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Suriname, 1.6% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Belgium, that number is 0.2% of people as of 2024.
live 8.5 years longer
In Suriname, the average life expectancy is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024. In Belgium, that number is 82 years (80 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.
be 32.3% less likely to be obese
In Suriname, 30.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Belgium, that number is 20.9% of people as of 2024.
see 6.6 times more spent on your healthcare
Suriname spends $1,143 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Belgium spends $7,489 as of 2023.
have 2.6 times more doctors per person
Suriname has 13.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Belgium has 35.7 as of 2022.
have 36.5% more access to essential health services
Suriname scores 63 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Belgium scores 86 as of 2021.
be 17.5% less likely to die by suicide
Suriname has a suicide rate of 22.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Belgium, it is 18.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 24.5% less likely to be unemployed
In Suriname, 7.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Belgium, that number is 5.9% as of 2025.
be 30.1% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Suriname, 17.6% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Belgium, however, that number is 12.3% as of 2022.
make 8.6 times more money
Suriname has a GDP per capita of $7,070 as of 2025, while in Belgium, the GDP per capita is $60,750 as of 2025.
Life
be 95.2% less likely to die during childbirth
In Suriname, approximately 84.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Belgium, 4.0 women do as of 2023.
be 79.1% less likely to die during infancy
In Suriname, approximately 14.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Belgium, on the other hand, 3.1 children do as of 2024.
have 46.4% fewer children
In Suriname, there are approximately 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Belgium, there are 9.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 2.2 times more on education
Suriname spends 2.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Belgium spends 6.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 99.6% more on healthcare
Suriname spends 5.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Belgium, that number is 10.8% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 82.8% less coastline
Suriname has a total of 386 km of coastline. In Belgium, that number is 66 km.
Safety
be 83.4% less likely to be murdered
Suriname has a homicide rate of 6.5 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Belgium, that number is 1.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 71.6% less likely to die in a road accident
In Suriname, road accidents kill 16.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Belgium, they kill 4.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 2.4 times more home broadband
Suriname has 18.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Belgium has 44.2 as of 2024.
use 2.5 times more electricity
Suriname uses 2,897 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Belgium uses 7,099 kWh as of 2024.
live with 13.4 times more strain on fresh water
Suriname withdraws 4% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Belgium withdraws 53% as of 2022.
Environment
be 61.5% less likely to die from air pollution
In Suriname, air pollution causes 39.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Belgium, it causes 15.0 as of 2019.
emit 80.0% more CO2
Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Belgium emits 7.3 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: Suriname vs. Belgium
Belgium: At a glance
How big is Belgium compared to Suriname? See an in-depth size comparison.