If you lived in Namibia instead of Tonga, you would:

Health

be 75.3% less likely to be obese

In Tonga, 73.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Namibia, that number is 18.3% of people as of 2024.

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see 2.1 times more spent on your healthcare

Tonga spends $512 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Namibia spends $1,068 as of 2023.

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have 10.5% more access to essential health services

Tonga scores 57 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Namibia scores 63 as of 2021.

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live 5.5 years less

In Tonga, the average life expectancy is 73 years (70 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024. In Namibia, that number is 68 years (63 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024.

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have 45.5% fewer doctors per person

Tonga has 10.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. Namibia has 5.5 as of 2022.

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be 81.6% more likely to die by suicide

Tonga has a suicide rate of 4.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Namibia, it is 8.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 9.6 times more likely to be unemployed

In Tonga, 2.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Namibia, that number is 19.3% as of 2025.

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make 25.5% less money

Tonga has a GDP per capita of $6,547 as of 2025, while in Namibia, the GDP per capita is $4,876 as of 2025.

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Life

have 12.4% more children

In Tonga, there are approximately 23.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Namibia, there are 25.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 2.1 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Tonga, approximately 67.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Namibia, 139.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 11.9% less likely to be literate

In Tonga, the literacy rate is 99.5% as of 2023. In Namibia, it is 87.6% as of 2023.

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be 4.7 times more likely to die during infancy

In Tonga, approximately 7.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Namibia, on the other hand, 36.4 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 43.3% less likely to have access to electricity

In Tonga, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Namibia, that number is 57% of people on average (75% in urban areas, and 34% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 12.5% less likely to have access to drinking water

In Tonga, approximately 99% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 99% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Namibia, that number is 87% of people on average (96% in urban areas, and 74% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 71.0% more on education

Tonga spends 5.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Namibia spends 9.1% of total GDP on education as of 2024.

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spend 28.8% more on healthcare

Tonga spends 7.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Namibia, that number is 9.5% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 3.8 times more coastline

Tonga has a total of 419 km of coastline. In Namibia, that number is 1,572 km.

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Safety

be 11.8 times more likely to be murdered

Tonga has a homicide rate of 0.9 per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Namibia, that number is 11.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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be 2.6 times more likely to die in a road accident

In Tonga, road accidents kill 8.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Namibia, they kill 22.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 65.4% less home broadband

Tonga has 8.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Namibia has 2.8 as of 2024.

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Environment

emit 26.4% less CO2

Tonga emits 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Namibia emits 1.2 tonnes as of 2024.

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be 79.2% more likely to die from air pollution

In Tonga, air pollution causes 24.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Namibia, it causes 43.0 as of 2019.

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

Namibia: At a glance

Namibia is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 823,290 sq km. South Africa occupied the German colony of South-West Africa during World War I and administered it as a mandate until after World War II, when it annexed the territory. In 1966 the Marxist South-West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) guerrilla group launched a war of independence for the area that became Namibia, but it was not until 1988 that South Africa agreed to end its administration in accordance with a UN peace plan for the entire region. Namibia has been governed by SWAPO since the country won independence in 1990. Hifikepunye POHAMBA was elected president in November 2004 in a landslide victory replacing Sam NUJOMA who led the country during its first 14 years of self rule. POHAMBA was reelected in November 2009.
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How big is Namibia compared to Tonga? See an in-depth size comparison.

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