Libya vs South Africa

Libya
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan
Upper middle income
Capital: Tripoli
Population
7.4M
GDP
$48.5B
South Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa
Upper middle income
Capital: Pretoria
Population
64M
GDP
$401.1B

POP 8.7x GDP 8.3x LE 4.8 yrs same-band UMC

Widest indicator spreads · Libya vs South Africa

Forest Area99.1%Net Migration97.9%Freshwater Withdrawal94.2%Population Density92%Population88.5%GDP (Current USD)87.9%Under-5 Mortality Rate72.1%GDP Growth Rate71.8%
WIDE pair: the board is the Forest Area gap first (Libya UMC vs South Africa UMC).

Demographics: Population Density (South Africa, 92% spread)

Indicator Libya South Africa Year
Population Density 4.2 52.1 2023
Population 7.4M 64M 2024
Urban Population 87.9% 63.7% 2024
Population Ages 65+ 5.0% 6.7% 2024

3 closer demographics rows sit on the Libya and South Africa profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Economy: GDP (Current USD) (South Africa, 88% spread)

Indicator Libya South Africa Year
GDP (Current USD) $48.5B $401.1B 2024
GDP Growth Rate 1.9% 0.5% 2024
Foreign Direct Investment $794.7M $2.3B 2023
Trade (% of GDP) 137.5% 61.6% 2024

5 closer economy rows sit on the Libya and South Africa profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Health: Under-5 Mortality Rate (Libya, 72% spread)

Indicator Libya South Africa Year
Under-5 Mortality Rate 9.8 35.1 2024
Infant Mortality Rate 7.9 24.2 2024
Stunting Prevalence (under 5) 7.9% 21.3% 2022
Physicians (per 1,000 people) 2.0 0.8 2017

3 closer health rows sit on the Libya and South Africa profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Education: School Enrollment (Tertiary) (Libya, 60% spread)

Indicator Libya South Africa Year
School Enrollment (Tertiary) 58.5% 23.5% 2003

5 closer education rows sit on the Libya and South Africa profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Environment: Forest Area (South Africa, 99% spread)

Indicator Libya South Africa Year
Forest Area 0.1% 14.0% 2023
Freshwater Withdrawal 817.1% 47.1% 2022
Renewable Energy Consumption 3.1% 9.7% 2021
CO2 Emissions Per Capita 8.7 6.9 2024

1 closer environment rows sit on the Libya and South Africa profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Infrastructure: Access to Sanitation (South Africa, 71% spread)

Indicator Libya South Africa Year
Access to Sanitation 21.7% 73.8% 2024
Access to Electricity 73.2% 87.7% 2023

3 closer infrastructure rows sit on the Libya and South Africa profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Social: Net Migration (South Africa, 98% spread)

Indicator Libya South Africa Year
Net Migration 3.4K 167K 2024
Female Labor Participation 33.3% 49.8% 2024

4 closer social rows sit on the Libya and South Africa profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

How to read this Libya vs South Africa comparison

Libya (UMC, Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan) vs South Africa (UMC, Sub-Saharan Africa) is a WIDE WDI pair: population is 8.7x smaller (7.4M vs 64M) and total GDP is 8.3x smaller ($48.5B vs $401.1B). The gap board leads on Forest Area (~99% relative spread) across 47 indicators in 8 topics. Same income tier; rate and stock gaps are the sharper policy read. Figures may come from different reporting years; dollar values move with exchange rates; national averages conceal inequality. See our methodology.

Other curated pairs · WIDE band

Indexable comparisons only (Module 42). Full picker with every country lives on /compare, not duplicated under every pair.

Libya vs South Africa figures: World Bank Open Data and health rows: WHO Global Health Observatory. CC BY 4.0 · same-band UMC · WIDE scale band.