If you lived in Ghana instead of Somalia, you would:

Health

live 13.7 years longer

In Somalia, the average life expectancy is 56 years (53 years for men, 58 years for women) as of 2022. In Ghana, that number is 69 years (68 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2022.

be 17.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Somalia, 0.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In Ghana, that number is 1.7% of people as of 2020.

be 31.3% more likely to be obese

In Somalia, 8.3% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Ghana, that number is 10.9% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 4.5 times more money

Somalia has a GDP per capita of $1,500 as of 2023, while in Ghana, the GDP per capita is $6,700 as of 2023.

be 83.8% less likely to be unemployed

In Somalia, 19.0% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Ghana, that number is 3.1% as of 2023.

be 57.0% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Somalia, 54.4% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Ghana, however, that number is 23.4% as of 2016.

Life

be 57.6% less likely to die during childbirth

In Somalia, approximately 621.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Ghana, 263.0 women do as of 2020.

be 62.3% less likely to die during infancy

In Somalia, approximately 86.5 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Ghana, on the other hand, 32.6 children do as of 2022.

have 26.2% fewer children

In Somalia, there are approximately 37.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Ghana, there are 27.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 74.0% more likely to have access to electricity

In Somalia, approximately 49% of people have electricity access (71% in urban areas, and 31% in rural areas) as of 2022. In Ghana, that number is 85% of people on average (95% in urban areas, and 74% in rural areas) as of 2022.

be 4.7 times more likely to have internet access

In Somalia, approximately 14.5% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Ghana, about 68.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 13.3 times more on education

Somalia spends 0.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2019. Ghana spends 4.0% of total GDP on education as of 2018.

Geography

see 82.2% less coastline

Somalia has a total of 3,025 km of coastline. In Ghana, that number is 539 km.


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

Ghana: At a glance

Ghana is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 227,533 sq km. Formed from the merger of the British colony of the Gold Coast and the Togoland trust territory, Ghana in 1957 became the first sub-Saharan country in colonial Africa to gain its independence. Ghana endured a long series of coups before Lt. Jerry RAWLINGS took power in 1981 and banned political parties. After approving a new constitution and restoring multiparty politics in 1992, RAWLINGS won presidential elections in 1992 and 1996 but was constitutionally prevented from running for a third term in 2000. John KUFUOR succeeded him and was reelected in 2004. John Atta MILLS won the 2008 presidential election and took over as head of state, but he died in July 2012 and was constitutionally succeeded by his vice president John Dramani MAHAMA, who subsequently won the December 2012 presidential election.
Read more

How big is Ghana compared to Somalia? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Ghana.or Somalia It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.