Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Nicaragua instead of South Africa, you would:

Health

be 99.0% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In South Africa, 19.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In Nicaragua, that number is 0.2% of people as of 2020.

live 9.5 years longer

In South Africa, the average life expectancy is 65 years (64 years for men, 67 years for women) as of 2022. In Nicaragua, that number is 75 years (73 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2022.

be 16.3% less likely to be obese

In South Africa, 28.3% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Nicaragua, that number is 23.7% of people as of 2016.

Economy

be 82.9% less likely to be unemployed

In South Africa, 28.0% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Nicaragua, that number is 4.8% as of 2023.

pay a 33.3% lower top tax rate

South Africa has a top tax rate of 45.0% as of 2017. In Nicaragua, the top tax rate is 30.0% as of 2016.

make 49.0% less money

South Africa has a GDP per capita of $14,300 as of 2023, while in Nicaragua, the GDP per capita is $7,300 as of 2023.

be 50.0% more likely to live below the poverty line

In South Africa, 16.6% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In Nicaragua, however, that number is 24.9% as of 2016.

Life

be 38.6% less likely to die during childbirth

In South Africa, approximately 127.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Nicaragua, 78.0 women do as of 2020.

be 26.2% less likely to die during infancy

In South Africa, approximately 25.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Nicaragua, on the other hand, 19.1 children do as of 2022.

be 13.1% less likely to be literate

In South Africa, the literacy rate is 95.0% as of 2019. In Nicaragua, it is 82.6% as of 2015.

Basic Needs

be 20.8% less likely to have internet access

In South Africa, approximately 72.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Nicaragua, about 57.0% do as of 2021.

be 14.0% less likely to have access to improved drinking water

In South Africa, approximately 97% of people have improved drinking water access (100% in urban areas, and 90% in rural areas) as of 2020. In Nicaragua, that number is 83% of people on average (98% in urban areas, and 63% in rural areas) as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 30.3% less on education

South Africa spends 6.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. Nicaragua spends 4.6% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

Geography

see 67.5% less coastline

South Africa has a total of 2,798 km of coastline. In Nicaragua, that number is 910 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: General Directorate of Revenues, The World Factbook, South African Revenue Service.

Nicaragua: At a glance

Nicaragua is a sovereign country in Central America/Caribbean, with a total land area of approximately 119,990 sq km. The Pacific coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. After losing free and fair elections in 1990, 1996, and 2001, former Sandinista President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra was elected president in 2006 and reelected in 2011. The 2008 municipal elections, 2010 regional elections, 2011 presidential elections, 2012 municipal elections, and 2013 regional elections were marred by widespread irregularities. Nicaragua's infrastructure and economy - hard hit by the earlier civil war and by Hurricane Mitch in 1998 - are slowly being rebuilt, but democratic institutions have been weakened under the ORTEGA administration.
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How big is Nicaragua compared to South Africa? See an in-depth size comparison.

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