If you lived in Papua New Guinea instead of Syria, you would:

Health

be 23.4% less likely to be obese

In Syria, 27.8% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 21.3% of people as of 2016.

live 4.8 years less

In Syria, the average life expectancy is 74 years (73 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2022. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 69 years (68 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

make 44.8% more money

Syria has a GDP per capita of $2,900 as of 2021, while in Papua New Guinea, the GDP per capita is $4,200 as of 2023.

be 80.4% less likely to be unemployed

In Syria, 13.5% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.6% as of 2023.

be 55.2% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Syria, 82.5% live below the poverty line as of 2014. In Papua New Guinea, however, that number is 37.0% as of 2002.

pay a 90.9% higher top tax rate

Syria has a top tax rate of 22.0% as of 2016. In Papua New Guinea, the top tax rate is 42.0% as of 2016.

Life

have 29.5% more children

In Syria, there are approximately 21.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, there are 28.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 6.4 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Syria, approximately 30.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Papua New Guinea, 192.0 women do as of 2020.

be 25.7% less likely to be literate

In Syria, the literacy rate is 86.4% as of 2015. In Papua New Guinea, it is 64.2% as of 2015.

be 2.1 times more likely to die during infancy

In Syria, approximately 15.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Papua New Guinea, on the other hand, 33.6 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 78.7% less likely to have access to electricity

In Syria, approximately 89% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 74% in rural areas) as of 2022. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 19% of people on average (65% in urban areas, and 14% in rural areas) as of 2022.

be 31.3% less likely to have internet access

In Syria, approximately 46.6% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Papua New Guinea, about 32.0% do as of 2021.

be 52.4% less likely to have access to improved drinking water

In Syria, approximately 100% of people have improved drinking water access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2020. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 48% of people on average (86% in urban areas, and 42% in rural areas) as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 72.5% less on education

Syria spends 5.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2009. Papua New Guinea spends 1.4% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

Geography

see 26.7 times more coastline

Syria has a total of 193 km of coastline. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 5,152 km.


The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Ministry of Finance, Syria, Internal Revenue Commission, Papua New Guinea.

Papua New Guinea: At a glance

Papua New Guinea (sometimes abbreviated PNG) is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 452,860 sq km. The eastern half of the island of New Guinea - second largest in the world - was divided between Germany (north) and the UK (south) in 1885. The latter area was transferred to Australia in 1902, which occupied the northern portion during World War I and continued to administer the combined areas until independence in 1975. A nine-year secessionist revolt on the island of Bougainville ended in 1997 after claiming some 20,000 lives.
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How big is Papua New Guinea compared to Syria? See an in-depth size comparison.

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