Quality of life comparison

compared to

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

Health

live 6.6 years longer

In Laos, the average life expectancy is 68 years (66 years for men, 70 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 4.5 times more likely to be obese

In Laos, 5.3% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Nicaragua, that number is 23.7% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 26.6% less money

Laos has a GDP per capita of $7,900 as of 2022, while in Nicaragua, the GDP per capita is $5,800 as of 2022.

be 30.6% more likely to be unemployed

In Laos, 3.8% of adults are unemployed as of 2022. In Nicaragua, that number is 5.0% as of 2022.

be 36.1% more likely to live below the poverty line

In Laos, 18.3% live below the poverty line as of 2018. In Nicaragua, however, that number is 24.9% as of 2016.

pay a 25.0% higher top tax rate

Laos has a top tax rate of 24.0% as of 2016. In Nicaragua, the top tax rate is 30.0% as of 2016.

Life

be 38.1% less likely to die during childbirth

In Laos, approximately 126.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Nicaragua, 78.0 women do as of 2020.

be 49.5% less likely to die during infancy

In Laos, approximately 37.8 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 17.2% fewer children

In Laos, there are approximately 19.8 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 13.8% less likely to have access to electricity

In Laos, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (98% in urban areas, and 93% in rural areas) as of 2021. In Nicaragua, that number is 86% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 66% in rural areas) as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 100.0% more on education

Laos spends 2.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Nicaragua spends 4.6% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 3.2 times more on healthcare

Laos spends 2.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Nicaragua, that number is 8.6% of GDP as of 2020.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: General Directorate of Revenues, The World Factbook, Ministry of Finance.

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 Laos? See an in-depth size comparison.

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