Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Malawi instead of Sierra Leone, you would:

Health

live 13.7 years longer

In Sierra Leone, the average life expectancy is 59 years (57 years for men, 60 years for women) as of 2022. In Malawi, that number is 72 years (69 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2022.

be 33.3% less likely to be obese

In Sierra Leone, 8.7% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Malawi, that number is 5.8% of people as of 2016.

be 5.4 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Sierra Leone, 1.5% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In Malawi, that number is 8.1% of people as of 2020.

Economy

be 10.7% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Sierra Leone, 56.8% live below the poverty line as of 2018. In Malawi, however, that number is 50.7% as of 2019.

be 56.3% more likely to be unemployed

In Sierra Leone, 3.3% of adults are unemployed as of 2022. In Malawi, that number is 5.1% as of 2022.

Life

be 38.5% more likely to be literate

In Sierra Leone, the literacy rate is 48.6% as of 2022. In Malawi, it is 67.3% as of 2021.

be 54.5% less likely to die during infancy

In Sierra Leone, approximately 73.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Malawi, on the other hand, 33.4 children do as of 2022.

have 13.6% fewer children

In Sierra Leone, there are approximately 30.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Malawi, there are 26.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 89.0% more likely to have internet access

In Sierra Leone, approximately 12.7% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Malawi, about 24.0% do as of 2021.

be 26.4% more likely to have access to improved drinking water

In Sierra Leone, approximately 73% of people have improved drinking water access (92% in urban areas, and 58% in rural areas) as of 2020. In Malawi, that number is 92% of people on average (97% in urban areas, and 91% in rural areas) as of 2020.

be 48.5% less likely to have access to electricity

In Sierra Leone, approximately 27% of people have electricity access (57% in urban areas, and 5% in rural areas) as of 2021. In Malawi, that number is 14% of people on average (54% in urban areas, and 6% in rural areas) as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 68.1% less on education

Sierra Leone spends 9.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. Malawi spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 38.6% less on healthcare

Sierra Leone spends 8.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Malawi, that number is 5.4% of GDP as of 2020.

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

Malawi: At a glance

Malawi is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 94,080 sq km. Established in 1891, the British protectorate of Nyasaland became the independent nation of Malawi in 1964. After three decades of one-party rule under President Hastings Kamuzu BANDA the country held multiparty elections in 1994, under a provisional constitution that came into full effect the following year. President Bingu wa MUTHARIKA, elected in May 2004 after a failed attempt by the previous president to amend the constitution to permit another term, struggled to assert his authority against his predecessor and subsequently started his own party, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in 2005. MUTHARIKA was reelected to a second term in May 2009. He oversaw some economic improvement in his first term, but was accused of economic mismanagement and poor governance in his second term. He died abruptly in April 2012 and was succeeded by his vice president, Joyce BANDA, who had earlier started her own party, the People's Party (PP). Population growth, increasing pressure on agricultural lands, corruption, and the scourge of HIV/AIDS pose major problems for Malawi.
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How big is Malawi compared to Sierra Leone? See an in-depth size comparison.

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