Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Senegal instead of Benin, you would:

Health

live 7.7 years longer

In Benin, the average life expectancy is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2022. In Senegal, that number is 70 years (68 years for men, 72 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

make 15.8% more money

Benin has a GDP per capita of $3,800 as of 2023, while in Senegal, the GDP per capita is $4,400 as of 2023.

be 2.0 times more likely to be unemployed

In Benin, 1.4% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Senegal, that number is 2.9% as of 2023.

be 21.3% more likely to live below the poverty line

In Benin, 38.5% live below the poverty line as of 2019. In Senegal, however, that number is 46.7% as of 2011.

Life

be 50.1% less likely to die during childbirth

In Benin, approximately 523.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Senegal, 261.0 women do as of 2020.

be 22.9% more likely to be literate

In Benin, the literacy rate is 45.8% as of 2021. In Senegal, it is 56.3% as of 2021.

be 41.8% less likely to die during infancy

In Benin, approximately 55.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Senegal, on the other hand, 32.4 children do as of 2022.

have 25.1% fewer children

In Benin, there are approximately 40.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Senegal, there are 30.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 20.2% more likely to have access to electricity

In Benin, approximately 56% of people have electricity access (67% in urban areas, and 18% in rural areas) as of 2022. In Senegal, that number is 68% of people on average (94% in urban areas, and 43% in rural areas) as of 2022.

be 70.6% more likely to have internet access

In Benin, approximately 34.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Senegal, about 58.0% do as of 2021.

be 16.9% more likely to have access to improved drinking water

In Benin, approximately 75% of people have improved drinking water access (79% in urban areas, and 71% in rural areas) as of 2020. In Senegal, that number is 87% of people on average (96% in urban areas, and 79% in rural areas) as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 83.3% more on education

Benin spends 3.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Senegal spends 5.5% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 100.0% more on healthcare

Benin spends 2.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Senegal, that number is 5.2% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 4.4 times more coastline

Benin has a total of 121 km of coastline. In Senegal, that number is 531 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.

Senegal: At a glance

Senegal is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 192,530 sq km. The French colonies of Senegal and the French Sudan were merged in 1959 and granted their independence as the Mali Federation in 1960. The union broke up after only a few months. Senegal joined with The Gambia to form the nominal confederation of Senegambia in 1982. The envisaged integration of the two countries was never carried out, and the union was dissolved in 1989. The Movement of Democratic Forces in the Casamance (MFDC) has led a low-level separatist insurgency in southern Senegal since the 1980s, and several peace deals have failed to resolve the conflict. Nevertheless, Senegal remains one of the most stable democracies in Africa and has a long history of participating in international peacekeeping and regional mediation. Senegal was ruled by a Socialist Party for 40 years until Abdoulaye WADE was elected president in 2000. He was reelected in 2007 and during his two terms amended Senegal's constitution over a dozen times to increase executive power and to weaken the opposition. His decision to run for a third presidential term sparked a large public backlash that led to his defeat in a March 2012 runoff election with Macky SALL.
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How big is Senegal compared to Benin? See an in-depth size comparison.

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