Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Ghana instead of Jamaica, you would:

Health

be 55.9% less likely to be obese

In Jamaica, 24.7% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Ghana, that number is 10.9% of people as of 2016.

be 21.4% more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Jamaica, 1.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In Ghana, that number is 1.7% of people as of 2020.

live 6.4 years less

In Jamaica, the average life expectancy is 76 years (74 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2022. In Ghana, that number is 69 years (68 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

be 30.3% less likely to be unemployed

In Jamaica, 4.4% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Ghana, that number is 3.1% as of 2023.

make 35.0% less money

Jamaica has a GDP per capita of $10,300 as of 2023, while in Ghana, the GDP per capita is $6,700 as of 2023.

be 36.8% more likely to live below the poverty line

In Jamaica, 17.1% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In Ghana, however, that number is 23.4% as of 2016.

Life

have 76.9% more children

In Jamaica, there are approximately 15.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Ghana, there are 27.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 2.7 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Jamaica, approximately 99.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Ghana, 263.0 women do as of 2020.

be 10.9% less likely to be literate

In Jamaica, the literacy rate is 88.7% as of 2015. In Ghana, it is 79.0% as of 2018.

be 2.9 times more likely to die during infancy

In Jamaica, approximately 11.2 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Ghana, on the other hand, 32.6 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 14.9% less likely to have access to electricity

In Jamaica, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 97% in rural areas) as of 2022. In Ghana, that number is 85% of people on average (95% in urban areas, and 74% in rural areas) as of 2022.

be 17.1% less likely to have internet access

In Jamaica, approximately 82.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Ghana, about 68.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 33.3% less on education

Jamaica spends 6.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. Ghana spends 4.0% of total GDP on education as of 2018.

spend 39.4% less on healthcare

Jamaica spends 6.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Ghana, that number is 4.0% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 47.3% less coastline

Jamaica has a total of 1,022 km of coastline. In Ghana, that number is 539 km.

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

Ghana: At a glance

Ghana is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 227,533 sq km. Formed from the merger of the British colony of the Gold Coast and the Togoland trust territory, Ghana in 1957 became the first sub-Saharan country in colonial Africa to gain its independence. Ghana endured a long series of coups before Lt. Jerry RAWLINGS took power in 1981 and banned political parties. After approving a new constitution and restoring multiparty politics in 1992, RAWLINGS won presidential elections in 1992 and 1996 but was constitutionally prevented from running for a third term in 2000. John KUFUOR succeeded him and was reelected in 2004. John Atta MILLS won the 2008 presidential election and took over as head of state, but he died in July 2012 and was constitutionally succeeded by his vice president John Dramani MAHAMA, who subsequently won the December 2012 presidential election.
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How big is Ghana compared to Jamaica? See an in-depth size comparison.

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