Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Suriname instead of Sweden, you would:

Health

be 5.5 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Sweden, 0.2% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2016. In Suriname, that number is 1.1% of people as of 2020.

live 10.3 years less

In Sweden, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2022. In Suriname, that number is 72 years (69 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2022.

be 28.2% more likely to be obese

In Sweden, 20.6% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Suriname, that number is 26.4% of people as of 2016.

Economy

pay a 33.5% lower top tax rate

Sweden has a top tax rate of 57.1% as of 2016. In Suriname, the top tax rate is 38.0% as of 2016.

make 70.4% less money

Sweden has a GDP per capita of $64,200 as of 2023, while in Suriname, the GDP per capita is $19,000 as of 2023.

be 4.3 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In Sweden, 16.1% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Suriname, however, that number is 70.0% as of 2002.

Life

have 39.3% more children

In Sweden, there are approximately 10.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Suriname, there are 14.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 19.2 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Sweden, approximately 5.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Suriname, 96.0 women do as of 2020.

be 13.2 times more likely to die during infancy

In Sweden, approximately 2.3 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Suriname, on the other hand, 30.2 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 25.0% less likely to have internet access

In Sweden, approximately 88.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Suriname, about 66.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 30.6% less on education

Sweden spends 7.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Suriname spends 5.0% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 40.4% less on healthcare

Sweden spends 11.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Suriname, that number is 6.8% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 88.0% less coastline

Sweden has a total of 3,218 km of coastline. In Suriname, that number is 386 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Ministry of Finance, Skatteverket.

Suriname: At a glance

Suriname is a sovereign country in South America, with a total land area of approximately 156,000 sq km. First explored by the Spaniards in the 16th century and then settled by the English in the mid-17th century, Suriname became a Dutch colony in 1667. With the abolition of African slavery in 1863, workers were brought in from India and Java. Independence from the Netherlands was granted in 1975. Five years later the civilian government was replaced by a military regime that soon declared a socialist republic. It continued to exert control through a succession of nominally civilian administrations until 1987, when international pressure finally forced a democratic election. In 1990, the military overthrew the civilian leadership, but a democratically elected government - a four-party coalition - returned to power in 1991. The coalition expanded to eight parties in 2005 and ruled until August 2010, when voters returned former military leader Desire BOUTERSE and his opposition coalition to power.
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How big is Suriname compared to Sweden? See an in-depth size comparison.

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