Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Papua New Guinea instead of Aruba, you would:

Health

live 8.6 years less

In Aruba, the average life expectancy is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2022. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 69 years (68 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

be 65.6% less likely to be unemployed

In Aruba, 7.7% of adults are unemployed as of 2016. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.6% as of 2023.

pay a 28.8% lower top tax rate

Aruba has a top tax rate of 59.0% as of 2016. In Papua New Guinea, the top tax rate is 42.0% as of 2016.

make 89.8% less money

Aruba has a GDP per capita of $41,300 as of 2022, while in Papua New Guinea, the GDP per capita is $4,200 as of 2023.

Life

have 2.4 times more children

In Aruba, there are approximately 11.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, there are 28.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 34.4% less likely to be literate

In Aruba, the literacy rate is 97.8% as of 2018. In Papua New Guinea, it is 64.2% as of 2015.

be 2.8 times more likely to die during infancy

In Aruba, approximately 12.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Papua New Guinea, on the other hand, 33.6 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 81.0% less likely to have access to electricity

In Aruba, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 92% in rural areas) as of 2022. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 19% of people on average (65% in urban areas, and 14% in rural areas) as of 2022.

be 67.0% less likely to have internet access

In Aruba, approximately 97.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, about 32.0% do as of 2021.

be 51.6% less likely to have access to improved drinking water

In Aruba, approximately 98% of people have improved drinking water access (98% in urban areas, and 98% in rural areas) as of 2015. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 48% of people on average (86% in urban areas, and 42% in rural areas) as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 77.4% less on education

Aruba spends 6.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2016. Papua New Guinea spends 1.4% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

Geography

see 75.2 times more coastline

Aruba has a total of 68 km of coastline. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 5,152 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Internal Revenue Commission, Papua New Guinea, Ministerio di Finansas, Comunicacion, Utilidad y Energia.

Papua New Guinea: At a glance

Papua New Guinea (sometimes abbreviated PNG) is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 452,860 sq km. The eastern half of the island of New Guinea - second largest in the world - was divided between Germany (north) and the UK (south) in 1885. The latter area was transferred to Australia in 1902, which occupied the northern portion during World War I and continued to administer the combined areas until independence in 1975. A nine-year secessionist revolt on the island of Bougainville ended in 1997 after claiming some 20,000 lives.
Read more

How big is Papua New Guinea compared to Aruba? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Papua New Guinea.or Aruba It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.