If you lived in Equatorial Guinea instead of Syria, you would:

Health

be 41.8% less likely to be obese

In Syria, 33.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 19.2% of people as of 2024.

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see 5.0 times more spent on your healthcare

Syria spends $122 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Equatorial Guinea spends $609 as of 2023.

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live 8.7 years less

In Syria, the average life expectancy is 73 years (70 years for men, 75 years for women) as of 2024. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 64 years (62 years for men, 66 years for women) as of 2024.

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have 89.9% fewer doctors per person

Syria has 15.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. Equatorial Guinea has 1.5 as of 2022.

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have 28.1% less access to essential health services

Syria scores 64 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Equatorial Guinea scores 46 as of 2021.

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be 11.9 times more likely to die by suicide

Syria has a suicide rate of 0.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Equatorial Guinea, it is 7.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 38.5% less likely to be unemployed

In Syria, 13.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 8.3% as of 2025.

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make 6.3 times more money

Syria has a GDP per capita of $1,057 as of 2022, while in Equatorial Guinea, the GDP per capita is $6,615 as of 2025.

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Life

have 29.5% more children

In Syria, there are approximately 23.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Equatorial Guinea, there are 30.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 8.7 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Syria, approximately 20.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Equatorial Guinea, 174.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 2.7 times more likely to die during infancy

In Syria, approximately 17.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Equatorial Guinea, on the other hand, 47.6 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 35.8% more likely to have internet access

In Syria, approximately 46.6% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Equatorial Guinea, about 63.3% do as of 2024.

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be 24.3% less likely to have access to electricity

In Syria, approximately 88% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 73% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 67% of people on average (89% in urban areas, and 2% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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Expenditures

spend 29.2% more on healthcare

Syria spends 2.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 3.5% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 53.4% more coastline

Syria has a total of 193 km of coastline. In Equatorial Guinea, that number is 296 km.

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Safety

be 60.9% less likely to die in a road accident

In Syria, road accidents kill 29.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Equatorial Guinea, they kill 11.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

live with 99.9% less strain on fresh water

Syria withdraws 124% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Equatorial Guinea withdraws 0% as of 2022.

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find 98.5% less home broadband

Syria has 6.9 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Equatorial Guinea has 0.1 as of 2022.

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Environment

be 28.9% less likely to die from air pollution

In Syria, air pollution causes 83.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Equatorial Guinea, it causes 59.0 as of 2019.

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emit 2.0 times more CO2

Syria emits 1.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Equatorial Guinea emits 2.5 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2022), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this

Equatorial Guinea: At a glance

Equatorial Guinea is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 28,051 sq km. Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President Teodoro Obiang NGUEMA MBASOGO has ruled the country since 1979 when he seized power in a coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996, 2002, and 2009 presidential elections - as well as the 1999, 2004, 2008, and 2013 legislative elections - were widely seen as flawed. The president exerts almost total control over the political system and has discouraged political opposition. Equatorial Guinea has experienced rapid economic growth due to the discovery of large offshore oil reserves, and in the last decade has become Sub-Saharan Africa's third largest oil exporter. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production, resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, improvements in the population's living standards have been slow to develop.
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How big is Equatorial Guinea compared to Syria? See an in-depth size comparison.

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