If you lived in New Zealand instead of Syria, you would:

Health

live 9.5 years longer

In Syria, the average life expectancy is 73 years (70 years for men, 75 years for women) as of 2024. In New Zealand, that number is 82 years (80 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 45.5 times more spent on your healthcare

Syria spends $122 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). New Zealand spends $5,576 as of 2024.

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have 2.4 times more doctors per person

Syria has 15.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. New Zealand has 36.1 as of 2022.

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have 32.8% more access to essential health services

Syria scores 64 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. New Zealand scores 85 as of 2021.

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be 20.2 times more likely to die by suicide

Syria has a suicide rate of 0.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In New Zealand, it is 11.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 62.6% less likely to be unemployed

In Syria, 13.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In New Zealand, that number is 5.1% as of 2025.

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make 46.9 times more money

Syria has a GDP per capita of $1,057 as of 2022, while in New Zealand, the GDP per capita is $49,591 as of 2025.

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Life

be 65.0% less 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 New Zealand, 7.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 77.4% less 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 New Zealand, on the other hand, 4.0 children do as of 2024.

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have 52.4% fewer children

In Syria, there are approximately 23.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In New Zealand, there are 11.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 13.1% more 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 New Zealand, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 2.0 times more likely to have internet access

In Syria, approximately 46.6% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In New Zealand, about 93.5% do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 3.7 times more on healthcare

Syria spends 2.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In New Zealand, that number is 10.1% of GDP as of 2024.

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Geography

see 78.4 times more coastline

Syria has a total of 193 km of coastline. In New Zealand, that number is 15,134 km.

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Safety

be 77.9% less likely to die in a road accident

In Syria, road accidents kill 29.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In New Zealand, they kill 6.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 5.5 times more home broadband

Syria has 6.9 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. New Zealand has 38.0 as of 2024.

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live with 93.5% less strain on fresh water

Syria withdraws 124% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. New Zealand withdraws 8% as of 2022.

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use 9.4 times more electricity

Syria uses 854 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. New Zealand uses 7,989 kWh as of 2024.

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Environment

be 85.5% less likely to die from air pollution

In Syria, air pollution causes 83.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In New Zealand, it causes 12.0 as of 2019.

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emit 4.7 times more CO2

Syria emits 1.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. New Zealand emits 6.0 tonnes as of 2024.

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

New Zealand: At a glance

New Zealand (sometimes abbreviated NZ) is a sovereign country in Australia-Oceania, with a total land area of approximately 264,537 sq km. The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840, their chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria while retaining territorial rights. That same year, the British began the first organized colonial settlement. A series of land wars between 1843 and 1872 ended with the defeat of the native peoples. The British colony of New Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907 and supported the UK militarily in both world wars. New Zealand's full participation in a number of defense alliances lapsed by the 1980s. In recent years, the government has sought to address longstanding Maori grievances.
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