According to the World Health Organization the global average life expectancy for men
and women in 2016 was 72.0.
While the world still faces many problems, we can say for certain that we have accomplished
a lot in terms of human longevity.
Pre-modern times the global lifetime average was around 30 years, and then it began to
increase as nations started to industrialize in the early 19th century.
For instance, the UK life expectancy before the 19th century was said to fluctuate between
30 and 40 years.
It’s now over 80.
In fact, most people in the world on average can expect to live past 70, but unfortunately
some countries have been left behind.
That’s who we’ll discuss today, in this episode of the Infographics Show, Countries
with the lowest life expectancy and why.
10.
Cameroon (58.1)
The five leading causes of death in this African country of 24.8 million people are: HIV/AIDS,
Influenza and Pneumonia, Stroke, Coronary Heart Disease, Diarrheal diseases.
But we might first look at the infant mortality rate in the country, which at 51 per 1,000
is very high.
Data changes depending on who compiled the statistics, but it doesn’t change much.
Many developed nations have an infant mortality rate at just 2, 3 or 4 for every 1,000 live
births, with the USA being on the high side for a rich nation at over 6 – something
the U.S. media has discussed many times.
The U.S. National Institutes of Health tells us this, “A child born in a developing country
is 14 times more likely to die during the first 28 days of life than a baby born in
a developed country.”
Why?
Simply because people don’t have advanced healthcare around them.
That’s one reason for a low life expectancy in Cameroon.
Borgen magazine further tells us that almost half of all people from Cameroon live under
the poverty line.
Add to that poor sanitation for around half of the people and we can see how disease can
easily be spread.
Cameroon does have a lot of HIV-related deaths, but according to World Atlas there are 14
countries that have higher rates.
Some of those will feature on this list.
9.
Mali (58)
This West African nation has a population of 19.2 million people.
While it’s life expectancy average is low, the U.S. National Institutes of Health tells
us the number was only 35 in 1960, so we guess that is something positive.
We are told the leading causes of death here are Coronary Heart Disease, Stroke, Diarrheal
diseases, Influenza and Pneumonia and Malaria.
HIV/AIDS was in sixth place.
It had one of the worst infant mortality rates in the world at 100 per 1,000.
It came down to 70 in 2017, but that is still very high.
That’s a one in ten chance a child born will die before the age of 5-years old.
Other sources say the rate is even higher.
Many children don’t even have access to healthcare, although more kids these days
have been immunized against such things as diphtheria, polio, tetanus and whooping cough.
Many of the poorer kids don’t have much of an education and end up working (illegally)
below the age of 14.
Take a hard start in life like this for many, and add to that outbreaks of cholera – according
to the Red Cross – and poor sanitation, then you can understand why many people die
young.
8.
Swaziland (57.7)
Swaziland, now officially called “The Kingdom of Eswatini” is located in Southern Africa.
In terms of population it is tiny, with only around 1.3 million people living there.
Those that do live there are at high risk of contracting HIV.
It has the highest rate in the world at 27.20 percent of the population.
This is a massive problem right now in the country, when you consider better infrastructure
certainly could reduce the number of infections.
If you consider that in the U.S. something like 55 percent of people will die from cancer,
stroke or heart disease, and only 5 percent of people in Swaziland die that way, preventing
the spread of HIV is the biggest concern by a long way.
The infant mortality rate is still high at 52.4, while diarrheal disease is up there
as a leading cause of death.
According to a Global Burden of Disease report, other reasons why folks die young are violence
and road accidents.
7.
Somalia (55.4)
This country in what’s called The Horn Africa has a population of 15.3 million people.
Alongside Mali, it’s up there with one of the highest infant mortality rates in the
world.
That is 96.6 per 1,000 births.
According to the WHO, the biggest cause of death is lower respiratory infection.
This could be pneumonia or lung abscesses or acute bronchitis.
We see this a lot in developing nations, and one of the reasons is because of bad nutrition
in childhood.
The Lancet adds to that, stating that it can also be caused by low birthweight, air pollution,
HIV co-infection, a vitamin D deficiency, and lack of immunizations.
We can basically say that poverty is a big factor.
The GDP per capita there is around $430.
Besides a high infant mortality rate and respiratory infections, the other leading causes of death
in this poor nation are diarrheal diseases, measles, malnutrition, meningitis and tuberculosis.
6.
Nigeria (55.2)
If you’ve been looking at forecasts of population growths around the world, you’ll know that
the population of Nigeria is about to rocket.
This West African nation is home to over 197.2 million people, and according to the UN it
will be over 300 million come 2050.
According to the International Monetary Fund Nigeria is just behind Egypt as the second
biggest GDP in all of Africa.
So, why do people, on average, have such short lives?
Some reports tell us this is an embarrassment to the country, and despite money being there
it still has a very high infant mortality rate of 71.2 per 1,000.
A writer in Nigeria added this in 2018, “Nigerians are not living for long or living well as
a result of a combination of factors ranging from high burden of illnesses, illiteracy,
corruption and poverty.”
The money doesn’t always trickle down, and those that get sick don’t have access to
good healthcare.
5.
Côte d'Ivoire (54.6) Also called the Ivory Coast, this West Africa
nation is home to just over 25 million people.
It has a high infant mortality rate at 57.2, but that seems to be a given on this list.
It’s different, though, in that malaria deaths are higher here.
The usual suspects of HIV/AIDS, respiratory diseases and diarrheal diseases are also there
as a contributor to the low life expectancy.
If there is any good news it is that the Ivory Coast over the recent years has experienced
an economic upturn.
This followed years of political troubles and conflicts.
Still, there are those getting left behind, as the World Bank tells us that around half
the population still lives in poverty.
4.
Chad (54.3)
This country in the north-central part of Africa is large in terms of land mass and
has a population of just over 15.4 million.
It’s also sometimes called a “failed state”, which basically means politically it doesn’t
work very well.
According to the Human Development Index it’s the seventh poorest nation on Earth, with
80 percent of its people living under the poverty line.
That doesn’t bode well for the health of Chadians.
The infant mortality rate is one of the highest in the world at 87 and the leading causes
of death in 2016 were as follows: diarrheal diseases, lower respiratory infections, HIV/AIDS,
malaria and ischemic heart disease.
That just means narrowed arteries and less blood and oxygen getting to the heart.
Borgen magazine actually tells us in 2018 Chad has the lowest life expectancy in the
world, but as we have said, data changes according to sources.
It explains that not only will many children not make it to five, but 9 percent of women
will die within 42 days after pregnancy.
3.
Sierra Leone (53.1)
This small nation that sits on the coast of West Africa has a population of just over
7.7 million people.
It’s home to deposits of titanium, gold and diamonds, but remains for the most part
impoverished.
It’s seen its fair share of crises, with European nations in the past setting up there
and fighting for those valuable natural resources.
There has been conflict after conflict, civil war, political coups, and then in 2014 it
got the Ebola virus epidemic.
There is high unemployment and around two thirds of the people are subsistence farmers,
meaning you grow only what feeds you and those around you.
HIV/AIDS is not as prevalent as many countries on this list, but many people have virtually
no access to healthcare.
70 out of 1,000 kids die before they reach the age of five.
You’ve also got to remember that hundreds of thousands of people, including children,
were made to fight in a civil war.
Many who survived are now said to be suffering from mental problems and there isn’t much
help.
2.
Central African Republic (53)
As the name tells us, this country is right in the heart of Africa.
It’s one of the poorest nations on Earth and was given the title of ‘world’s unhealthiest
country’ in 2015 by the Human Development Index.
It’s 4.7 million people live among vast quantities of gold, diamonds and oil, but
they are also used to political turmoil.
The child mortality rate is one of highest in the world at 88.4.
Many of those kids die from one of the country’s most feared diseases: Malaria.
Other leading causes of death are tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, respiratory infections and diarrheal
diseases.
Borgen tells us not only has conflict caused widespread poverty, but unsustainable farming
practices have led to food shortages.
Many people rely on world food programs and charitable healthcare.
1.
Lesotho (52.9)
Number one on this list is the nation that lies close to the tip of southern Africa.
It has a population of over 2.2 million.
Even though it’s at the bottom of this list, its infant mortality rate is better than many
other countries we’ve featured, at 47.6.
That’s still grim, but not so much in present company.
It has the second highest HIV/AIDS infection rate in the world at 25 percent.
It’s said that in some urban areas you can expect 40 percent of women to be infected
with the virus.
Because of this, the country has seen various campaigns encouraging people to get themselves
checked.
Over the last decade more antiretroviral drugs have also been given to people.
Lesotho sees serious issues with the treatment of women and children, with the former in
large numbers experiencing sexual abuse and the latter having to work at an early age.
The CDC tells us indeed HIV/AIDS is the leading cause of death, with Cardiovascular diseases,
Diarrheal diseases, Neoplasms and Neonatal disorders following.
Neonatal just mean diseases affecting newborns.
A neoplasm is a tumor.
Again, poverty and lack of real healthcare leads to many early deaths, but the very high
numbers of deaths related to HIV/AIDS doesn’t help matters.
One writer that went there to visit wrote in an article, “A common sight is the rather
staggering amount of billboards and signs along the roadside advertising AIDS prevention
services and, even more distressingly, funeral services.”
But let’s finish on something positive.
There he met a woman who had formed a support group to help infected women.
She had been receiving treatment.
“At 55 she looks healthy even though she had contracted HIV in the 1990s,” he wrote.
So, perhaps the people of Lesotho have a brighter future to look forward to.
Are you from any of these nations?
If so, can you tell us more about the problems.
Or have you visited one or more of these countries?
What did you think?
Tell us in the comments.
Also, be sure to check out our other video Most Painful Things A Person Can Experience.
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See you next time.