Quality of life comparison

compared to

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

Health

live 1.5 years longer

In Nauru, the average life expectancy is 68 years (64 years for men, 72 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.

be 65.1% less likely to be obese

In Nauru, 61.0% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 21.3% of people as of 2016.

Economy

be 88.5% less likely to be unemployed

In Nauru, 23.0% of adults are unemployed as of 2011. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.6% as of 2023.

make 63.2% less money

Nauru has a GDP per capita of $11,400 as of 2023, while in Papua New Guinea, the GDP per capita is $4,200 as of 2023.

Life

have 39.1% more children

In Nauru, there are approximately 20.2 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 4.3 times more likely to die during infancy

In Nauru, approximately 7.8 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 Nauru, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (99% in urban areas, and 99% 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 61.9% less likely to have internet access

In Nauru, approximately 84.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, about 32.0% do as of 2021.

be 52.5% less likely to have access to improved drinking water

In Nauru, approximately 100% of people have improved drinking water access as of 2020. In Papua New Guinea, 48% of people do as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 80.3% less on education

Nauru spends 7.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. Papua New Guinea spends 1.4% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 79.2% less on healthcare

Nauru spends 12.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.5% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 171.7 times more coastline

Nauru has a total of 30 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.

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

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