Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Belarus instead of Belgium, you would:

Health

live 7.6 years less

In Belgium, the average life expectancy is 82 years (79 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2022. In Belarus, that number is 74 years (69 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2022.

be 10.9% more likely to be obese

In Belgium, 22.1% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Belarus, that number is 24.5% of people as of 2016.

Economy

be 35.2% less likely to be unemployed

In Belgium, 5.5% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Belarus, that number is 3.6% as of 2023.

be 61.0% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Belgium, 12.3% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Belarus, however, that number is 4.8% as of 2020.

pay a 75.8% lower top tax rate

Belgium has a top tax rate of 53.7% as of 2016. In Belarus, the top tax rate is 13.0% as of 2017.

make 56.4% less money

Belgium has a GDP per capita of $63,600 as of 2023, while in Belarus, the GDP per capita is $27,700 as of 2023.

Life

be 80.0% less likely to die during childbirth

In Belgium, approximately 5.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Belarus, 1.0 women do as of 2020.

have 23.1% fewer children

In Belgium, there are approximately 10.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Belarus, there are 8.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Expenditures

spend 29.9% less on education

Belgium spends 6.7% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Belarus spends 4.7% of total GDP on education as of 2021.

spend 42.3% less on healthcare

Belgium spends 11.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Belarus, that number is 6.4% of GDP as of 2020.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Service Public Fédéral Finances, The World Factbook, Ministry for Taxes and Levies of the Republic of Belarus.

Belarus: At a glance

Belarus is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 202,900 sq km. After seven decades as a constituent republic of the USSR, Belarus attained its independence in 1991. It has retained closer political and economic ties to Russia than have any of the other former Soviet republics. Belarus and Russia signed a treaty on a two-state union on 8 December 1999 envisioning greater political and economic integration. Although Belarus agreed to a framework to carry out the accord, serious implementation has yet to take place. Since his election in July 1994 as the country's first directly elected president, Aleksandr LUKASHENKO has steadily consolidated his power through authoritarian means and a centralized economic system. Government restrictions on freedom of speech and the press, peaceful assembly, and religion remain in place.
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How big is Belarus compared to Belgium? See an in-depth size comparison.

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