Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Ethiopia instead of Zambia, you would:

Health

be 91.9% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Zambia, 11.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In Ethiopia, that number is 0.9% of people as of 2020.

live 2.0 years longer

In Zambia, the average life expectancy is 66 years (65 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2022. In Ethiopia, that number is 68 years (66 years for men, 70 years for women) as of 2022.

be 44.4% less likely to be obese

In Zambia, 8.1% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Ethiopia, that number is 4.5% of people as of 2016.

Economy

be 40.8% less likely to be unemployed

In Zambia, 5.9% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Ethiopia, that number is 3.5% as of 2023.

be 60.8% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Zambia, 60.0% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Ethiopia, however, that number is 23.5% as of 2015.

make 24.3% less money

Zambia has a GDP per capita of $3,700 as of 2023, while in Ethiopia, the GDP per capita is $2,800 as of 2023.

Life

be 97.8% more likely to die during childbirth

In Zambia, approximately 135.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Ethiopia, 267.0 women do as of 2020.

be 40.3% less likely to be literate

In Zambia, the literacy rate is 86.7% as of 2018. In Ethiopia, it is 51.8% as of 2017.

have 13.2% fewer children

In Zambia, there are approximately 34.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Ethiopia, there are 29.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 15.1% more likely to have access to electricity

In Zambia, approximately 48% of people have electricity access (86% in urban areas, and 14% in rural areas) as of 2022. In Ethiopia, that number is 55% of people on average (96% in urban areas, and 43% in rural areas) as of 2022.

be 19.0% less likely to have internet access

In Zambia, approximately 21.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Ethiopia, about 17.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 37.5% less on healthcare

Zambia spends 5.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Ethiopia, that number is 3.5% of GDP as of 2020.

spend 21.6% more on education

Zambia spends 3.7% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Ethiopia spends 4.5% of total GDP on education as of 2019.

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

Ethiopia: At a glance

Ethiopia is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 1,096,570 sq km. Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy maintained its freedom from colonial rule with the exception of a short-lived Italian occupation from 1936-41. In 1974, a military junta, the Derg, deposed Emperor Haile SELASSIE (who had ruled since 1930) and established a socialist state. Torn by bloody coups, uprisings, wide-scale drought, and massive refugee problems, the regime was finally toppled in 1991 by a coalition of rebel forces, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). A constitution was adopted in 1994, and Ethiopia's first multiparty elections were held in 1995. A border war with Eritrea late in the 1990s ended with a peace treaty in December 2000. In November 2007, the Eritrea-Ethiopia Border Commission (EEBC) issued specific coordinates as virtually demarcating the border and pronounced its work finished. Alleging that the EEBC acted beyond its mandate in issuing the coordinates, Ethiopia has not accepted them and has not withdrawn troops from previously contested areas pronounced by the EEBC as belonging to Eritrea. In August 2012, longtime leader Prime Minister MELES Zenawi died in office and was replaced by his Deputy Prime Minister HAILEMARIAM Desalegn, marking the first peaceful transition of power in decades.
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How big is Ethiopia compared to Zambia? See an in-depth size comparison.

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