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Mapped: Diabetes Rates by Country in 2021

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Mapping diabetes rates by country in 2021

Mapping Diabetes Rates by Country in 2021

Despite advancements in healthcare lengthening life expectancy across the world, there are still many diseases that are hard to beat. One of these growing and costly diseases is diabetes, but each country is being hit differently.

One of the leading causes of death and disability globally, over half a billion people are living with diabetes today. The World Bank’s IDF Diabetes Atlas reveals that diabetes was responsible for 6.7 million deaths in 2021 alone.

In this graphic, Alberto Rojo Moro uses this World Bank Atlas to map diabetes rates by country, highlighting the countries with the highest rates of the disease.

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes (also known as diabetes mellitusis) a long-lasting condition that affects how the body turns food into energy.

Normally, our bodies break down the food we consume into glucose (a sugar) and release it into our blood. When our level of blood sugar rises, insulin produced by our pancreas signals the body to use excess glucose as energy or store it for later consumption.

Diabetes restricts the pancreas from producing this life-saving insulin properly, thus causing high blood sugar levels. These high glucose levels can eventually impact the heart, kidney, and vision. There are two main types of diabetes:

  • Type 1 Diabetes: The immune system attacks and destroys the cells in your pancreas that make insulin. Causes are believed to be genetic and environmental.
  • Type 2 Diabetes: The body becomes resistant to insulin or doesn’t produce enough insulin to regulate blood sugar levels. It is caused by a mix of lifestyle factors (including obesity, physical inactivity, poor diet, and smoking) and genetics.

Type 2 diabetes is by far the most common form of the disease, making up between 90-95% of global cases.

Diabetes Rates by Country

With close to 33 million (31%) of its adult population suffering from diabetes, Pakistan was the country with the highest prevalence of diabetes.

RankCountry% of Diabetic Population Aged 20-79
1🇵🇰 Pakistan30.8
2🇵🇫 French Polynesia25.2
3🇰🇼 Kuwait24.9
4🇳🇷 Nauru23.4
5🇳🇨 New Caledonia23.4
6🇲🇭 Marshall Islands23.0
7🇲🇺 Mauritius22.6
8🇰🇮 Kiribati22.1
9🇪🇬 Egypt20.9
10🇦🇸 American Samoa20.3
11🇹🇻 Tuvalu20.3
12🇸🇧 Solomon Islands19.8
13🇶🇦 Qatar19.5
14🇬🇺 Guam19.1
15🇲🇾 Malaysia19.0
16🇸🇩 Sudan18.9
17🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia18.7
18🇫🇯 Fiji17.7
19🇵🇼 Palau17.0
20🇲🇽 Mexico16.9
21🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea16.7
22🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates16.4
23🇰🇳 Saint Kitts and Nevis16.1
24🇫🇲 Micronesia15.6
25🇻🇺 Vanuatu15.6
26🇯🇴 Jordan15.4
27🇹🇴 Tonga15.0
28🇸🇾 Syria14.9
29🇧🇿 Belize14.5
30🇹🇷 Turkey14.5
31🇧🇩 Bangladesh14.2
32🇧🇧 Barbados14.0
33🇴🇲 Oman13.8
34🇵🇷 Puerto Rico13.3
35🇬🇹 Guatemala13.1
36🇧🇲 Bermuda13.0
37🇰🇾 Cayman Islands13.0
38🇸🇷 Suriname12.7
39🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago12.7
40🇬🇩 Grenada12.6
41🇻🇮 United States Virgin Islands12.4
42🇹🇿 Tanzania12.3
43🇿🇲 Zambia11.9
44🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda11.7
45🇰🇲 Comoros11.7
46🇨🇼 Curacao11.7
47🇩🇲 Dominica11.7
48🇬🇾 Guyana11.7
49🇱🇨 Saint Lucia11.7
50🇸🇬 Singapore11.6
51🇧🇭 Bahrain11.3
52🇱🇰 Sri Lanka11.3
53🇧🇳 Brunei11.1
54🇯🇲 Jamaica11.1
55🇦🇫 Afghanistan10.9
56🇨🇱 Chile10.8
57🇿🇦 South Africa10.8
58🇮🇶 Iraq10.7
59🇺🇸 United States10.7
60🇨🇳 China10.6
61🇮🇩 Indonesia10.6
62🇩🇴 Dominican Republic10.5
63🇧🇹 Bhutan10.4
64🇪🇸 Spain10.3
65🇦🇱 Albania10.2
66🇦🇩 Andorra9.7
67🇹🇭 Thailand9.7
68🇹🇳 Tunisia9.6
69🇻🇪 Venezuela9.6
70🇳🇮 Nicaragua9.3
71🇲🇻 Maldives9.2
72🇵🇸 Palestine9.2
73🇼🇸 Samoa9.2
74🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina9.1
75🇮🇷 Iran9.1
76🇲🇪 Montenegro9.1
77🇲🇦 Morocco9.1
78🇵🇹 Portugal9.1
79🇷🇸 Serbia9.1
80🇺🇾 Uruguay9.0
81🇭🇹 Haiti8.9
82🇧🇸 Bahamas8.8
83🇧🇷 Brazil8.8
84🇨🇷 Costa Rica8.8
85🇻🇬 British Virgin Islands8.7
86🇱🇾 Libya8.7
87🇳🇵 Nepal8.7
88🇨🇾 Cyprus8.6
89🇰🇵 North Korea8.6
90🇹🇱 Timor8.6
91🇮🇱 Israel8.5
92🇸🇨 Seychelles8.5
93🇨🇴 Colombia8.3
94🇵🇦 Panama8.2
95🇱🇧 Lebanon8.0
96🇲🇹 Malta8.0
97🇻🇨 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines8.0
98🇭🇰 Hong Kong7.8
99🇲🇴 Macao7.8
100🇨🇦 Canada7.7
101🇨🇺 Cuba7.6
102🇵🇾 Paraguay7.5
103🇧🇬 Bulgaria7.4
104🇩🇯 Djibouti7.4
105🇸🇲 San Marino7.4
106🇰🇭 Cambodia7.3
107🇲🇼 Malawi7.3
108🇩🇿 Algeria7.1
109🇨🇿 Czechia7.1
110🇲🇲 Myanmar7.1
111🇵🇭 Philippines7.1
112🇭🇺 Hungary7.0
113🇺🇿 Uzbekistan7.0
114🇩🇪 Germany6.9
115🇲🇳 Mongolia6.9
116🇵🇱 Poland6.8
117🇰🇷 South Korea6.8
118🇳🇦 Namibia6.7
119🇹🇲 Turkmenistan6.7
120🇯🇵 Japan6.6
121🇰🇿 Kazakhstan6.6
122🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan6.6
123🇹🇯 Tajikistan6.6
124🇧🇮 Burundi6.5
125🇪🇷 Eritrea6.5
126🇪🇪 Estonia6.5
127🇷🇴 Romania6.5
128🇷🇼 Rwanda6.5
129🇸🇴 Somalia6.5
130🇸🇸 South Sudan6.5
131🇦🇺 Australia6.4
132🇬🇷 Greece6.4
133🇮🇹 Italy6.4
134🇸🇻 El Salvador6.3
135🇮🇲 Isle of Man6.3
136🇬🇧 United Kingdom6.3
137🇱🇦 Laos6.2
138🇲🇨 Monaco6.2
139🇳🇿 New Zealand6.2
140🇫🇮 Finland6.1
141🇱🇮 Liechtenstein6.1
142🇲🇰 North Macedonia6.1
143🇻🇳 Vietnam6.1
144🇱🇻 Latvia5.9
145🇱🇺 Luxembourg5.9
146🇨🇫 Central African Republic5.8
147🇹🇩 Chad5.8
148🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of Congo5.8
149🇱🇹 Lithuania5.8
150🇸🇰 Slovakia5.8
151🇬🇪 Georgia5.7
152🇦🇲 Armenia5.6
153🇦🇿 Azerbaijan5.6
154🇧🇾 Belarus5.6
155🇲🇩 Moldova5.6
156🇷🇺 Russia5.6
157🇺🇦 Ukraine5.6
158🇧🇴 Bolivia5.5
159🇨🇲 Cameroon5.5
160🇨🇬 Congo5.5
161🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea5.5
162🇬🇦 Gabon5.5
163🇮🇸 Iceland5.5
164🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe5.5
165🇦🇷 Argentina5.4
166🇾🇪 Yemen5.4
167🇩🇰 Denmark5.3
168🇫🇷 France5.3
169🇧🇼 Botswana5.3
170🇳🇪 Niger5.2
171🇭🇳 Honduras5.1
172🇪🇹 Ethiopia5.0
173🇸🇪 Sweden5.0
174🇭🇷 Croatia4.8
175🇵🇪 Peru4.8
176🇦🇴 Angola4.6
177🇦🇹 Austria4.6
178🇸🇿 Eswatini4.6
179🇱🇸 Lesotho4.6
180🇲🇬 Madagascar4.6
181🇨🇭 Switzerland4.6
182🇺🇬 Uganda4.6
183🇳🇱 Netherlands4.5
184🇪🇨 Ecuador4.4
185🇦🇼 Aruba4.3
186🇰🇪 Kenya4.0
187🇫🇴 Faroe Islands3.8
188🇧🇪 Belgium3.6
189🇳🇬 Nigeria3.6
190🇳🇴 Norway3.6
191🇬🇱 Greenland3.3
192🇲🇿 Mozambique3.3
193🇸🇳 Senegal3.1
194🇮🇪 Ireland3.0
195🇬🇭 Ghana2.6
196🇧🇫 Burkina Faso2.1
197🇨🇻 Cape Verde2.1
198🇨🇮 Cote d'Ivoire2.1
199🇬🇳 Guinea2.1
200🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau2.1
201🇱🇷 Liberia2.1
202🇲🇱 Mali2.1
203🇲🇷 Mauritania2.1
204🇸🇱 Sierra Leone2.1
205🇹🇬 Togo2.1
206🇿🇼 Zimbabwe2.1
207🇬🇲 Gambia1.9
208🇧🇯 Benin1.1

The situation in Pakistan is currently not expected to improve in the near future. By 2045, the country is estimated to have 62 million people suffering from diabetes due to numerous reasons including malnutrition.

This chronic disease has also reached alarming levels in many Oceanic island countries and territories, including French Polynesia, New Caledonia, and American Samoa. Each has a diabetic prevalence above 20%, with reasons ranging from malnutrition to obesity.

Meanwhile, African nations like Benin and The Gambia recorded the lowest prevalence of diabetes in the world. In 2021, African countries had a combined total of 23.6 million adults with diabetes, less than 2% of the continent’s population. However, this number is predicted to double to 55 million by 2045.

Most Diabetic Countries in Absolute Terms

In China, diabetes was prevalent in 10.6% of the nation’s adult population in 2021. While this only puts the country in 60th place in terms of prevalence rate, this is equivalent to roughly 140 million adults with diabetes because of the country’s large population.

Similarly, India’s 9.6% prevalence of diabetes equaled 77 million adults suffering from the disease in the country, more than double the number of Pakistan’s diabetic citizens.

A similar story follows in the Americas, where Mexico has the highest adult prevalence of diabetes at 16.9% or 14.1 million people. Though the U.S. has a lower rate at 10.7%, its higher population gives it an estimated 32.2 million adults with diabetes.

Breaking down diabetes rates by country highlights that this a global health challenge. To address the growing burden of diabetes, we need to focus on prevention, early detection, and management of diabetes.

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This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.

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Countries

Mapped: Africa’s Population Density Patterns

We map out Africa’s population density, spotlighting the continent’s most populous countries and cities.

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A cropped map of Africa’s population density, spotlighting the continent’s most populous countries and cities, and the fastest-growing regions.

Mapped: Africa’s Population Density Patterns

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Africa, the world’s second largest continent, spans over 30 million km2, home to the not only world’s biggest desert but also the second-largest tropical rainforest, and of course, approximately 1.4 billion people.

In this infographic, we map out the continent’s population density patterns. It’s a prime example of how humans congregate near fresh water and around the edges of natural obstacles.

This population density data comes from the Gridded Population of the World dataset created by the Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) hosted by NASA’s Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC).

Ranked: Most Populous African Countries

Africa’s second largest economy, Nigeria, is also its most populous: more than 220 million people live in this diverse West African country with 250 ethnic groups, speaking over 500 different languages.

And the nation is only growing. By 2100, it’s estimated that the Nigerian population could be more than three-fold its current size, at nearly 800 million residents, becoming the second-most populous country in the world.

RankCountryPopulation
1🇳🇬 Nigeria224M
2🇪🇹 Ethiopia127M
3🇪🇬 Egypt112M
4🇨🇩 DRC 102M
5🇹🇿 Tanzania67M
6🇿🇦 South Africa59M
7🇰🇪 Kenya55M
8🇺🇬 Uganda49M
9🇸🇩 Sudan48M
10🇩🇿 Algeria46M

Source: UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, World Population Prospects. (2022)

Across the continent, along its eastern side, Ethiopia, is the second-most populous country on the continent. Unlike Nigeria—which has nearly 20 cities with at least half a million residents—more than three-quarters of Ethiopia’s 127 million people live in rural communities.

Ranked third, Egypt (112 million) is the only North African country in the top five by population. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) comes in fourth (102 million), with Tanzania (67 million) rounding out the top five.

Ranked: Fastest Growing African Countries By Population

In the year 1900, Africa accounted for 9% of the world’s population. Currently its share stands close to 18%. By 2025, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects one in four people in the world to live in Africa, and says the continent’s demographic transition has the power to “transform the world.”

The most populous African countries (DRC, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Egypt) will contribute the lion’s share to this growth of course, but within the continent, other countries are also seeing relatively rapid population growth.

RankCountryGrowth Rate
1🇸🇸 South Sudan4.78%
2🇳🇪 Niger3.66%
3🇧🇮 Burundi3.59%
4🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea3.36%
5🇦🇴 Angola3.34%
6🇧🇯 Benin3.31%
7🇺🇬 Uganda3.22%
8🇨🇩 DRC3.13%
9🇹🇩 Chad3.05%
10🇲🇱 Mali2.93%

Source: CIA World Factbook.

In South Sudan, the world’s newest country, the population is growing at nearly 5% every year. The broader sub-Saharan population meanwhile is growing at half that rate. Aside from a higher fertility rate, the country is also seeing an influx of refugees from conflict areas in neighboring Sudan.

While no other African nation is quite matching South Sudan’s population growth, several of Africa’s poorer economies are also posting an annual population increase of more than 3% including Niger, Burundi, and Chad.

Ranked: Most Populous African Cities

About half of Africa lives in urban areas, which is less than the global average of 57%. The 10 most populous cities on the continent together account for about 115 million people, more than 1.5x the UK’s total population.

Egypt’s capital, Cairo, built along the banks of the Nile, is home to more than 22 million residents, and ranks as Africa’s largest city. This bustling metropolis has stood as an important trade juncture between continents for more than 1,400 years—and is still somehow one of Egypt’s younger cities.

RankCityCountryPopulation
1Cairo🇪🇬 Egypt22.2M
2Lagos🇳🇬 Nigeria21.4M
3Kinshasa🇨🇩 DRC 15.0M
4Johannesburg🇿🇦 South Africa14.8M
5Luanda🇦🇴 Angola9.0M
6Khartoum🇸🇩 Sudan6.9M
7Abidjan🇨🇮 Cote d'Ivoire6.6M
8Nairobi🇰🇪 Kenya6.6M
9Accra🇬🇭 Ghana6.4M
10Dar es Salaam🇹🇿 Tanzania6.0M

Source: Urban agglomerates (2023) Citypopulation.de.

Down south, across the Sahara desert, and near the shores of the Atlantic, Nigeria’s former capital Lagos has slightly more than 21 million people. The city’s name comes from the numerous surrounding lagoons, and its original name in Yoruba, “Eko”, also means “lake.” Population estimates for the city are often disputed because of several different administrative regions, but also because of how fast Lagos is growing: it’s estimated 2,000 new residents move in every day.

Kinshasa, the capital of the DRC ranks third with about 15 million residents, and is slated to become the fourth largest city in the world, with 35 million people, by 2050.

Johannesburg, South Africa (15 million), and Luanda, Angola (9 million) round out the top five most populous African cities.

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