Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Lesotho instead of Sao Tome and Principe, you would:
Health
be 70.3 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Sao Tome and Principe, 0.3% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In Lesotho, that number is 21.1% of people as of 2020.
live 7.5 years less
In Sao Tome and Principe, the average life expectancy is 67 years (65 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2022. In Lesotho, that number is 60 years (58 years for men, 62 years for women) as of 2022.
be 33.9% more likely to be obese
In Sao Tome and Principe, 12.4% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Lesotho, that number is 16.6% of people as of 2016.
Economy
be 10.5% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Sao Tome and Principe, 55.5% live below the poverty line as of 2017. In Lesotho, however, that number is 49.7% as of 2017.
make 54.5% less money
Sao Tome and Principe has a GDP per capita of $5,500 as of 2023, while in Lesotho, the GDP per capita is $2,500 as of 2023.
be 15.8% more likely to be unemployed
In Sao Tome and Principe, 14.2% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Lesotho, that number is 16.5% as of 2023.
Life
be 3.9 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Sao Tome and Principe, approximately 146.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Lesotho, 566.0 women do as of 2020.
be 14.6% less likely to be literate
In Sao Tome and Principe, the literacy rate is 94.8% as of 2021. In Lesotho, it is 81.0% as of 2021.
have 14.2% fewer children
In Sao Tome and Principe, there are approximately 26.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Lesotho, there are 22.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 35.9% less likely to have access to electricity
In Sao Tome and Principe, approximately 78% of people have electricity access (80% in urban areas, and 74% in rural areas) as of 2022. In Lesotho, that number is 50% of people on average (81% in urban areas, and 38% in rural areas) as of 2022.
be 16.1% less likely to have access to improved drinking water
In Sao Tome and Principe, approximately 98% of people have improved drinking water access (100% in urban areas, and 94% in rural areas) as of 2020. In Lesotho, that number is 83% of people on average (96% in urban areas, and 77% in rural areas) as of 2020.
Expenditures
spend 74.0% more on education
Sao Tome and Principe spends 5.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Lesotho spends 8.7% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 2.4 times more on healthcare
Sao Tome and Principe spends 4.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Lesotho, that number is 11.8% of GDP as of 2020.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.
Lesotho: At a glance
How big is Lesotho compared to Sao Tome and Principe? See an in-depth size comparison.