Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Ethiopia instead of North Korea, you would:

Health

be 33.8% less likely to be obese

In North Korea, 6.8% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Ethiopia, that number is 4.5% of people as of 2016.

live 3.5 years less

In North Korea, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2022. In Ethiopia, that number is 68 years (66 years for men, 70 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

make 64.7% more money

North Korea has a GDP per capita of $1,700 as of 2015, while in Ethiopia, the GDP per capita is $2,800 as of 2023.

be 16.7% more likely to be unemployed

In North Korea, 3.0% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Ethiopia, that number is 3.5% as of 2023.

Life

have 2.2 times more children

In North Korea, there are approximately 13.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Ethiopia, there are 29.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 2.5 times more likely to die during childbirth

In North Korea, approximately 107.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Ethiopia, 267.0 women do as of 2020.

be 48.2% less likely to be literate

In North Korea, the literacy rate is 100.0% as of 2015. In Ethiopia, it is 51.8% as of 2017.

be 50.9% more likely to die during infancy

In North Korea, approximately 22.2 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Ethiopia, on the other hand, 33.5 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 19.2% less likely to have access to improved drinking water

In North Korea, approximately 94% of people have improved drinking water access (98% in urban areas, and 89% in rural areas) as of 2020. In Ethiopia, that number is 76% of people on average (98% in urban areas, and 70% in rural areas) as of 2020.

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

Ethiopia: At a glance

Ethiopia is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 1,096,570 sq km. Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy maintained its freedom from colonial rule with the exception of a short-lived Italian occupation from 1936-41. In 1974, a military junta, the Derg, deposed Emperor Haile SELASSIE (who had ruled since 1930) and established a socialist state. Torn by bloody coups, uprisings, wide-scale drought, and massive refugee problems, the regime was finally toppled in 1991 by a coalition of rebel forces, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). A constitution was adopted in 1994, and Ethiopia's first multiparty elections were held in 1995. A border war with Eritrea late in the 1990s ended with a peace treaty in December 2000. In November 2007, the Eritrea-Ethiopia Border Commission (EEBC) issued specific coordinates as virtually demarcating the border and pronounced its work finished. Alleging that the EEBC acted beyond its mandate in issuing the coordinates, Ethiopia has not accepted them and has not withdrawn troops from previously contested areas pronounced by the EEBC as belonging to Eritrea. In August 2012, longtime leader Prime Minister MELES Zenawi died in office and was replaced by his Deputy Prime Minister HAILEMARIAM Desalegn, marking the first peaceful transition of power in decades.
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How big is Ethiopia compared to North Korea? See an in-depth size comparison.

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