Which has higher human development index, Malawi or Sudan?

Sudan, at 0.419 HDI against 0.415 HDI in Malawi as of 2011.

How many years of comparable data are there for Malawi and Sudan?

10 years are reported by both, from 1980 to 2011.

Where does this data come from?

http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/data/, published as Human development index (HDI). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Malawi vs Sudan: Human development index

Malawi

0.415 HDI

in 2011

Sudan

0.419 HDI

in 2011

Malawi rank

36th

Sudan rank

35th

Human development index over time

Malawi
Sudan

How they compare

Sudan currently reports 0.419 HDI against 0.415 HDI in Malawi, a difference of 0.004 HDI.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 10 shared years of data; in 1980 it was Malawi ahead.

Malawi ranks 36th and Sudan ranks 35th of 50 countries.

Across the 4 decades both report, Malawi averaged higher in 1 and Sudan in 3.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Malawi	Sudan	Difference	Ahead
1980s	0.272 HDI	0.269 HDI	0.003 HDI	Malawi
1990s	0.295 HDI	0.301 HDI	0.006 HDI	Sudan
2000s	0.377 HDI	0.394 HDI	0.017 HDI	Sudan
2010s	0.414 HDI	0.415 HDI	0.001 HDI	Sudan

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher human development index, Malawi or Sudan?: Sudan, at 0.419 HDI against 0.415 HDI in Malawi as of 2011.
What is the difference in human development index between Malawi and Sudan?: 0.004 HDI, with Sudan ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Malawi and Sudan?: 10 years are reported by both, from 1980 to 2011.
How do Malawi and Sudan rank globally for human development index?: Malawi ranks 36th and Sudan ranks 35th of 50 countries.
Where does this data come from?: http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/data/, published as Human development index (HDI). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Malawi vs Sudan: Human development index. Statizoid, drawing on http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/data/. Retrieved 24 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/compare/human-development-index-hdi/malawi/sudan/

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About this data

Indicator: Human development index (HDI)
Unit: HDI
Source: http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/data/
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 50 places, 459 data points, 1980–2011
Last refreshed: 18 September 2026

The Human Development Index (HDI) is a summary measure of human development. It measures the average achievements in a country in three basic dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent standard of living. The HDI is the geometric mean of normalized indices measuring achievements in each dimension. The HDI is the geometric mean of the three dimension indices and embodies imperfect substitutability across all HDI dimensions. It thus addresses one of the most serious criticisms of the linear aggregation formula, which allowed for perfect substitution across dimensions. Some substitutability is inherent in the definition of any index that increases with the values of its components. Data sources: Life expectancy at birth: UNDESA; Mean years of schooling: Barro and Lee; Expected years of schooling: UNESCO Institute for Statistics; Gross national income (GNI) per capita: World Bank.