If you lived in Kazakhstan instead of Uruguay, you would:

Health

be 39.6% less likely to be obese

In Uruguay, 35.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, that number is 21.1% of people as of 2024.

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be 41.0% less likely to die by suicide

Uruguay has a suicide rate of 24.8 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Kazakhstan, it is 14.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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live 3.8 years less

In Uruguay, the average life expectancy is 78 years (74 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, that number is 75 years (70 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 53.4% less spent on your healthcare

Uruguay spends $3,135 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Kazakhstan spends $1,460 as of 2023.

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have 19.7% fewer doctors per person

Uruguay has 46.7 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Kazakhstan has 37.5 as of 2023.

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Economy

be 36.6% less likely to be unemployed

In Uruguay, 7.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Kazakhstan, that number is 4.8% as of 2025.

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be 71.1% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Uruguay, 17.3% live below the poverty line as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, however, that number is 5.0% as of 2024.

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make 41.7% less money

Uruguay has a GDP per capita of $25,216 as of 2025, while in Kazakhstan, the GDP per capita is $14,692 as of 2025.

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Life

be 33.3% less likely to die during childbirth

In Uruguay, approximately 15.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Kazakhstan, 10.0 women do as of 2023.

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have 99.2% more children

In Uruguay, there are approximately 9.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, there are 19.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 19.4% more likely to die during infancy

In Uruguay, approximately 6.2 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Kazakhstan, on the other hand, 7.4 children do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 58.2% less on healthcare

Uruguay spends 9.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Kazakhstan, that number is 3.8% of GDP as of 2023.

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Safety

be 77.3% less likely to be murdered

Uruguay has a homicide rate of 11.2 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Kazakhstan, that number is 2.5 per 100,000 as of 2022.

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Infrastructure

use 35.8% more electricity

Uruguay uses 3,790 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Kazakhstan uses 5,146 kWh as of 2023.

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find 53.6% less home broadband

Uruguay has 33.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Kazakhstan has 15.3 as of 2024.

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live with 2.9 times more strain on fresh water

Uruguay withdraws 12% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Kazakhstan withdraws 35% as of 2022.

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Environment

be 4.2 times more likely to die from air pollution

In Uruguay, air pollution causes 16.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Kazakhstan, it causes 68.0 as of 2019.

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emit 4.9 times more CO2

Uruguay emits 2.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Kazakhstan emits 12.6 tonnes as of 2024.

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

Kazakhstan: At a glance

Kazakhstan is a sovereign country in Central Asia, with a total land area of approximately 2,699,700 sq km. Ethnic Kazakhs, a mix of Turkic and Mongol nomadic tribes who migrated to the region by the 13th century, were rarely united as a single nation. The area was conquered by Russia in the 18th century, and Kazakhstan became a Soviet Republic in 1936. During the 1950s and 1960s agricultural "Virgin Lands" program, Soviet citizens were encouraged to help cultivate Kazakhstan's northern pastures. This influx of immigrants (mostly Russians, but also some other deported nationalities) skewed the ethnic mixture and enabled non-ethnic Kazakhs to outnumber natives. Non-Muslim ethnic minorities departed Kazakhstan in large numbers from the mid-1990s through the mid-2000s and a national program has repatriated about a million ethnic Kazakhs back to Kazakhstan. These trends have allowed Kazakhs to become the titular majority again. This dramatic demographic shift has also undermined the previous religious diversity and made the country more than 70 percent Muslim. Kazakhstan's economy is larger than those of all the other Central Asian states largely due to the country's vast natural resources. Current issues include: developing a cohesive national identity; managing Islamic revivalism; expanding the development of the country's vast energy resources and exporting them to world markets; diversifying the economy outside the oil, gas, and mining sectors; enhancing Kazakhstan's economic competitiveness; developing a multiparty parliament and advancing political and social reform; and strengthening relations with neighboring states and other foreign powers.
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