Skip to content
CountryAtlas

Extremes

The largest moves in the world, by window.

13 facets · 2013–2025 · Countries above 1M inhabitants

Increase and decrease are directions of change, not judgements — a rising share of renewables and a rising debt ratio are both “increases”.

Most rapidly ageing

Largest increases·Median age· 2013–2023 · 154 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Puerto Rico
    +7.0 yrs38.3 yrs to 45.3 yrs
  2. 2South Korea
    +5.9 yrs38.5 yrs to 44.5 yrs
  3. 3Taiwan
    +5.5 yrs38.0 yrs to 43.5 yrs
  4. 4Iran
    +5.2 yrs27.7 yrs to 32.9 yrs
  5. 5Hong Kong
    +5.2 yrs41.0 yrs to 46.2 yrs
  6. 6Jamaica
    +4.8 yrs26.8 yrs to 31.7 yrs
  7. 7Costa Rica
    +4.8 yrs29.3 yrs to 34.1 yrs
  8. 8Thailand
    +4.8 yrs34.9 yrs to 39.7 yrs
  9. 9Bosnia and Herzegovina
    +4.8 yrs40.1 yrs to 44.9 yrs
  10. 10Trinidad and Tobago
    +4.8 yrs32.0 yrs to 36.7 yrs

Fastest urbanising

Largest increases·Urban population (% of total)· 2015–2025 · 140 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Thailand
    +15.8 pts47.0 % to 62.8 %
  2. 2Rwanda
    +12.7 pts18.2 % to 30.9 %
  3. 3Somalia
    +11.3 pts43.9 % to 55.1 %
  4. 4Cambodia
    +11.0 pts30.1 % to 41.1 %
  5. 5Burundi
    +11.0 pts14.7 % to 25.7 %
  6. 6Kosovo
    +11.0 pts39.9 % to 50.9 %
  7. 7Lesotho
    +10.6 pts34.1 % to 44.7 %
  8. 8Switzerland
    +10.1 pts75.6 % to 85.7 %
  9. 9Mauritania
    +9.8 pts51.7 % to 61.5 %
  10. 10Senegal
    +9.5 pts46.3 % to 55.8 %

Largest fertility declines

Largest decreases·Fertility rate, total· 2014–2024 · 149 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Burkina Faso
    −1.485.59 births/woman to 4.11 births/woman
  2. 2Niger
    −1.417.34 births/woman to 5.93 births/woman
  3. 3Timor-Leste
    −1.374.00 births/woman to 2.63 births/woman
  4. 4Gambia
    −1.295.20 births/woman to 3.91 births/woman
  5. 5Uganda
    −1.245.41 births/woman to 4.17 births/woman
  6. 6Nigeria
    −1.245.62 births/woman to 4.38 births/woman
  7. 7Senegal
    −1.124.88 births/woman to 3.77 births/woman
  8. 8Iraq
    −1.094.31 births/woman to 3.22 births/woman
  9. 9Somalia
    −1.057.06 births/woman to 6.01 births/woman
  10. 10Guinea-Bissau
    −1.034.79 births/woman to 3.76 births/woman

Biggest gains in life expectancy

Largest increases·Life expectancy at birth· 2014–2024 · 153 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Central African Republic
    +17.4 yrs40.3 yrs to 57.7 yrs
  2. 2South Sudan
    +12.1 yrs45.6 yrs to 57.7 yrs
  3. 3Eswatini
    +10.8 yrs53.5 yrs to 64.3 yrs
  4. 4Namibia
    +8.2 yrs59.3 yrs to 67.5 yrs
  5. 5Sierra Leone
    +7.7 yrs54.3 yrs to 62.0 yrs
  6. 6Botswana
    +7.1 yrs62.2 yrs to 69.3 yrs
  7. 7Syria
    +7.1 yrs65.5 yrs to 72.6 yrs
  8. 8Lesotho
    +7.0 yrs50.8 yrs to 57.8 yrs
  9. 9Zambia
    +6.4 yrs60.1 yrs to 66.5 yrs
  10. 10Malawi
    +5.9 yrs61.7 yrs to 67.6 yrs

Largest GDP per capita transformations

Largest increases·GDP per capita, PPP (current international $)· 2015–2025 · 150 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Guinea
    +155.7 %intl $1,930 to intl $4,935
  2. 2Armenia
    +153.7 %intl $9,757 to intl $24.8k
  3. 3Bangladesh
    +141.1 %intl $4,212 to intl $10.2k
  4. 4Georgia
    +139.7 %intl $12.3k to intl $29.4k
  5. 5Rwanda
    +136.5 %intl $1,761 to intl $4,164
  6. 6Vietnam
    +135.8 %intl $7,672 to intl $18.1k
  7. 7Romania
    +135.4 %intl $21.6k to intl $50.9k
  8. 8Bulgaria
    +135.2 %intl $18.9k to intl $44.5k
  9. 9Albania
    +127.8 %intl $12.4k to intl $28.2k
  10. 10India
    +123.0 %intl $5,269 to intl $11.7k

Fastest digital adoption

Largest increases·Individuals using the Internet (% of population)· 2014–2024 · 149 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Iraq
    +69.8 pts11.6 % to 81.5 %
  2. 2Mongolia
    +65.2 pts19.9 % to 85.1 %
  3. 3Libya
    +64.2 pts17.8 % to 82.0 %
  4. 4Kyrgyzstan
    +63.7 pts28.3 % to 92.0 %
  5. 5Thailand
    +56.0 pts34.9 % to 90.9 %
  6. 6Indonesia
    +55.6 pts17.1 % to 72.8 %
  7. 7Cambodia
    +54.5 pts14.0 % to 68.5 %
  8. 8Uzbekistan
    +54.0 pts35.5 % to 89.5 %
  9. 9Ghana
    +53.2 pts19.0 % to 72.2 %
  10. 10India
    +51.4 pts13.5 % to 64.9 %

Largest renewable transitions

Largest increases·Renewable electricity share· 2015–2024 · 123 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Liberia
    +54.4 pts0.0 % to 54.4 %
  2. 2Estonia
    +44.2 pts15.4 % to 59.6 % (2015–2025)
  3. 3Lebanon
    +41.1 pts2.7 % to 43.8 %
  4. 4Netherlands
    +38.6 pts12.6 % to 51.2 % (2015–2025)
  5. 5Lithuania
    +37.9 pts39.7 % to 77.6 % (2015–2025)
  6. 6Palestine
    +37.5 pts1.9 % to 39.4 %
  7. 7Djibouti
    +35.0 pts0.0 % to 35.0 %
  8. 8Portugal
    +33.3 pts47.6 % to 81.0 % (2015–2025)
  9. 9Venezuela
    +32.3 pts58.8 % to 91.1 %
  10. 10Germany
    +29.7 pts29.4 % to 59.1 % (2015–2025)

Largest CO₂ per capita reductions

Largest decreases·CO₂ emissions per capita· 2014–2024 · 76 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Yemen
    −71.7 %0.88 t to 0.25 t
  2. 2Estonia
    −57.3 %14.29 t to 6.11 t
  3. 3Finland
    −39.2 %8.72 t to 5.30 t
  4. 4Angola
    −38.7 %0.96 t to 0.59 t
  5. 5United Kingdom
    −33.1 %6.76 t to 4.53 t
  6. 6Ukraine
    −32.9 %5.61 t to 3.76 t
  7. 7Jordan
    −32.5 %2.98 t to 2.01 t
  8. 8Equatorial Guinea
    −32.1 %5.46 t to 3.70 t
  9. 9Netherlands
    −31.9 %9.25 t to 6.30 t
  10. 10Germany
    −30.5 %9.74 t to 6.77 t

Fastest shrinking populations

Largest decreases·Population, total· 2015–2025 · 26 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Moldova
    −16.8 %2.8M to 2.4M
  2. 2Ukraine
    −14.9 %45.8M to 39M
  3. 3Albania
    −14.0 %2.7M to 2.3M
  4. 4Kosovo
    −11.8 %1.8M to 1.6M
  5. 5Bosnia and Herzegovina
    −10.8 %3.5M to 3.1M
  6. 6Puerto Rico
    −9.9 %3.5M to 3.2M
  7. 7Lebanon
    −9.6 %6.5M to 5.8M
  8. 8Bulgaria
    −7.9 %7M to 6.4M
  9. 9Serbia
    −7.7 %7.1M to 6.5M
  10. 10Venezuela
    −6.7 %30.6M to 28.5M

Fastest growing populations

Largest increases·Population, total· 2015–2025 · 135 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Chad
    +43.4 %14.6M to 21M
  2. 2Somalia
    +42.4 %13.8M to 19.7M
  3. 3Niger
    +40.0 %19.9M to 27.9M
  4. 4DR Congo
    +39.2 %81M to 112.8M
  5. 5Angola
    +38.6 %28.2M to 39M
  6. 6Uganda
    +36.9 %37.5M to 51.4M
  7. 7Tanzania
    +35.6 %52M to 70.5M
  8. 8Mali
    +35.5 %18.6M to 25.2M
  9. 9United Arab Emirates
    +35.4 %8.5M to 11.5M
  10. 10Mozambique
    +34.2 %26.5M to 35.6M

Largest inflation surges

Largest increases·Inflation, consumer prices· 2015–2025 · 100 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Venezuela
    +130.2 pts121.7 % to 252.0 %
  2. 2South Sudan
    +38.7 pts52.8 % to 91.4 % (2015–2024)
  3. 3Iran
    +29.7 pts12.5 % to 42.2 %
  4. 4Burundi
    +28.6 pts5.5 % to 34.1 %
  5. 5Türkiye
    +27.2 pts7.7 % to 34.9 %
  6. 6Haiti
    +21.9 pts6.7 % to 28.6 %
  7. 7Lebanon
    +18.3 pts-3.7 % to 14.6 %
  8. 8Bolivia
    +15.5 pts4.1 % to 19.5 %
  9. 9Nigeria
    +14.0 pts9.0 % to 23.0 %
  10. 10Myanmar
    +12.0 pts10.0 % to 22.0 %

Largest public debt build-ups

Largest increases·General government gross debt (% of GDP)· 2015–2024 · 112 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Senegal
    +87.9 pts44.5 % to 132.4 %
  2. 2Bahrain
    +70.5 pts63.2 % to 133.7 %
  3. 3Singapore
    +69.2 pts102.1 % to 171.3 % (2015–2025)
  4. 4Bolivia
    +50.8 pts34.0 % to 84.8 % (2015–2025)
  5. 5China
    +49.6 pts40.8 % to 90.4 %
  6. 6Malawi
    +42.9 pts35.5 % to 78.4 % (2015–2025)
  7. 7Laos
    +41.6 pts53.1 % to 94.7 %
  8. 8Trinidad and Tobago
    +41.0 pts43.2 % to 84.2 % (2015–2025)
  9. 9Algeria
    +40.3 pts7.7 % to 48.1 %
  10. 10South Africa
    +33.4 pts45.2 % to 78.6 % (2015–2025)

Largest falls in unemployment

Largest decreases·Unemployment rate· 2015–2023 · 107 countries evaluated

Open ranking →Explore on the map →
  1. 1Kosovo
    −22.0 pts32.9 % to 10.9 %
  2. 2Bosnia and Herzegovina
    −16.7 pts27.7 % to 11.0 % (2015–2025)
  3. 3Greece
    −16.4 pts25.0 % to 8.5 % (2015–2025)
  4. 4North Macedonia
    −14.1 pts26.4 % to 12.3 % (2015–2025)
  5. 5Spain
    −11.7 pts22.1 % to 10.4 % (2015–2025)
  6. 6Croatia
    −11.1 pts16.1 % to 5.0 % (2015–2025)
  7. 7Serbia
    −10.5 pts17.7 % to 7.1 % (2015–2025)
  8. 8Cyprus
    −10.1 pts15.0 % to 4.9 % (2015–2025)
  9. 9Egypt
    −6.3 pts13.1 % to 6.8 % (2015–2025)
  10. 10Albania
    −6.3 pts17.2 % to 10.9 % (2015–2025)