Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Nicaragua instead of Afghanistan, you would:

Health

live 21.1 years longer

In Afghanistan, the average life expectancy is 54 years (52 years for men, 55 years for women) as of 2022. In Nicaragua, that number is 75 years (73 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2022.

be 4.3 times more likely to be obese

In Afghanistan, 5.5% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Nicaragua, that number is 23.7% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 3.6 times more money

Afghanistan has a GDP per capita of $2,000 as of 2022, while in Nicaragua, the GDP per capita is $7,300 as of 2023.

be 66.6% less likely to be unemployed

In Afghanistan, 14.4% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Nicaragua, that number is 4.8% as of 2023.

be 54.3% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Afghanistan, 54.5% live below the poverty line as of 2017. In Nicaragua, however, that number is 24.9% as of 2016.

pay a 50.0% higher top tax rate

Afghanistan has a top tax rate of 20.0% as of 2016. In Nicaragua, the top tax rate is 30.0% as of 2016.

Life

be 87.4% less likely to die during childbirth

In Afghanistan, approximately 620.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Nicaragua, 78.0 women do as of 2020.

be 2.2 times more likely to be literate

In Afghanistan, the literacy rate is 37.3% as of 2021. In Nicaragua, it is 82.6% as of 2015.

be 81.8% less likely to die during infancy

In Afghanistan, approximately 104.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Nicaragua, on the other hand, 19.1 children do as of 2022.

have 52.0% fewer children

In Afghanistan, there are approximately 34.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Nicaragua, there are 16.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 3.2 times more likely to have internet access

In Afghanistan, approximately 18.0% of the population has internet access as of 2020. In Nicaragua, about 57.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 44.5% less on healthcare

Afghanistan spends 15.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Nicaragua, that number is 8.6% of GDP as of 2020.

spend 58.6% more on education

Afghanistan spends 2.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Nicaragua spends 4.6% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: General Directorate of Revenues, The World Factbook, Afghanistan Revenue Department.

Nicaragua: At a glance

Nicaragua is a sovereign country in Central America/Caribbean, with a total land area of approximately 119,990 sq km. The Pacific coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. After losing free and fair elections in 1990, 1996, and 2001, former Sandinista President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra was elected president in 2006 and reelected in 2011. The 2008 municipal elections, 2010 regional elections, 2011 presidential elections, 2012 municipal elections, and 2013 regional elections were marred by widespread irregularities. Nicaragua's infrastructure and economy - hard hit by the earlier civil war and by Hurricane Mitch in 1998 - are slowly being rebuilt, but democratic institutions have been weakened under the ORTEGA administration.
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How big is Nicaragua compared to Afghanistan? See an in-depth size comparison.

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