Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Iraq instead of Suriname, you would:
Health
be 93.8% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Suriname, 1.6% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Iraq, that number is 0.1% of people as of 2024.
be 86.7% less likely to die by suicide
Suriname has a suicide rate of 22.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Iraq, it is 3.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 1.3 years less
In Suriname, the average life expectancy is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024. In Iraq, that number is 72 years (70 years for men, 74 years for women) as of 2024.
be 28.9% more likely to be obese
In Suriname, 30.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Iraq, that number is 39.7% of people as of 2024.
see 26.2% less spent on your healthcare
Suriname spends $1,143 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Iraq spends $843 as of 2023.
have 24.6% fewer doctors per person
Suriname has 13.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Iraq has 10.2 as of 2022.
Economy
be 97.7% more likely to be unemployed
In Suriname, 7.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Iraq, that number is 15.5% as of 2025.
make 23.5% less money
Suriname has a GDP per capita of $7,070 as of 2025, while in Iraq, the GDP per capita is $5,410 as of 2025.
Life
be 21.4% 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 Iraq, 66.0 women do as of 2023.
have 49.2% more children
In Suriname, there are approximately 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Iraq, there are 25.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 11.5% less likely to be literate
In Suriname, the literacy rate is 95.0% as of 2021. In Iraq, it is 84.1% as of 2021.
be 35.8% more 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 Iraq, on the other hand, 20.1 children do as of 2024.
Geography
see 85.0% less coastline
Suriname has a total of 386 km of coastline. In Iraq, that number is 58 km.
Safety
be 32.7% more likely to die in a road accident
In Suriname, road accidents kill 16.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Iraq, they kill 21.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 15.1 times more strain on fresh water
Suriname withdraws 4% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Iraq withdraws 60% as of 2022.
use 52.5% less electricity
Suriname uses 2,897 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Iraq uses 1,377 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 2.2 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Suriname, air pollution causes 39.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Iraq, it causes 87.0 as of 2019.
emit 27.6% more CO2
Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Iraq emits 5.2 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Suriname vs. Iraq
Iraq: At a glance
How big is Iraq compared to Suriname? See an in-depth size comparison.