Zambia vs Nigeria

Zambia
Sub-Saharan Africa
Lower middle income
Capital: Lusaka
Population
21.3M
GDP
$25.3B
Nigeria
Sub-Saharan Africa
Lower middle income
Capital: Abuja
Population
232.7M
GDP
$252.3B

POP 10.9x GDP 10.0x LE 11.9 yrs same-band LMC

Widest indicator spreads · Zambia vs Nigeria

Net Migration121%Education Expenditure (%…92.2%Maternal Mortality Ratio91.4%Population90.8%GDP (Current USD)90%Population Density88.9%Electric Power Consumption80.2%Intentional Homicides67%
WIDE pair: the board is the Net Migration gap first (Zambia LMC vs Nigeria LMC).

Demographics: Population (Nigeria, 91% spread)

Indicator Zambia Nigeria Year
Population 21.3M 232.7M 2024
Population Density 27.9 250.2 2023
Population Ages 65+ 1.9% 3.0% 2024
Urban Population 45.5% 63.0% 2024

3 closer demographics rows sit on the Zambia and Nigeria profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Economy: GDP (Current USD) (Nigeria, 90% spread)

Indicator Zambia Nigeria Year
GDP (Current USD) $25.3B $252.3B 2024
Inflation (Consumer Prices) 15.0% 33.2% 2024
Foreign Direct Investment $2.4B $1.1B 2024
Unemployment Rate 5.9% 3.0% 2024

5 closer economy rows sit on the Zambia and Nigeria profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Health: Maternal Mortality Ratio (Zambia, 91% spread)

Indicator Zambia Nigeria Year
Maternal Mortality Ratio 85 993 2023
Under-5 Mortality Rate 48.4 115.6 2024
Infant Mortality Rate 34.6 69.8 2024
Health Expenditure (% of GDP) 6.0% 4.2% 2023

3 closer health rows sit on the Zambia and Nigeria profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Education: Education Expenditure (% of GDP) (Zambia, 92% spread)

Indicator Zambia Nigeria Year
Education Expenditure (% of GDP) 4.1% 0.3% 2023
School Enrollment (Tertiary) 4.0% 9.7% 2012
School Enrollment (Primary) 115.6% 89.6% 2024
School Enrollment (Secondary) 56.8% 46.9% 2024

2 closer education rows sit on the Zambia and Nigeria profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Environment: Electric Power Consumption (Zambia, 80% spread)

Indicator Zambia Nigeria Year
Electric Power Consumption 727 144 2023
Freshwater Withdrawal 2.0% 5.6% 2022
Forest Area 59.5% 23.2% 2023

2 closer environment rows sit on the Zambia and Nigeria profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Infrastructure: Internet Users (Nigeria, 59% spread)

Indicator Zambia Nigeria Year
Internet Users 17.1% 41.2% 2024
Mobile Subscriptions 108.7 70.8 2024
Access to Electricity 51.1% 61.2% 2023

2 closer infrastructure rows sit on the Zambia and Nigeria profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

Social: Net Migration (Zambia, 121% spread)

Indicator Zambia Nigeria Year
Net Migration 7.4K -35,202 2024
Intentional Homicides 5.2 15.7 2015
Poverty (< $2.15/day) 71.7% 41.8% 2022
GINI Index 51.5 33.9 2022

2 closer social rows sit on the Zambia and Nigeria profiles; this pair keeps the steep spreads only.

How to read this Zambia vs Nigeria comparison

Zambia (LMC, Sub-Saharan Africa) vs Nigeria (LMC, Sub-Saharan Africa) is a WIDE WDI pair: population is 10.9x smaller (21.3M vs 232.7M) and total GDP is 10.0x smaller ($25.3B vs $252.3B). The gap board leads on Net Migration (~121% relative spread) across 48 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.

Zambia vs Nigeria figures: World Bank Open Data and health rows: WHO Global Health Observatory. CC BY 4.0 · same-band LMC · WIDE scale band.