Lithuania vs Romania development indicators, 2024

Demography and Health

Lithuania has a crude birth rate of 7.2 per 1,000 people, slightly lower than Romania's 8. Despite this, Lithuania has a higher crude death rate at 12.9 compared to Romania's 12.7. Life expectancy at birth is similar, with Lithuania at 77 years and Romania at 76.6 years. Importantly, Lithuania shows a significantly lower under-five mortality rate of 3.4 per 1,000 live births compared to Romania's 6.6, indicating better childhood health. Lithuania also has a net migration gain with 2,617 individuals moving in, while Romania experiences a substantial net migration loss of 28,466. Both countries face a prevalence of undernourishment at 2.5% of the population.

Economy

Lithuania boasts a GDP per capita of $29,386, significantly higher than Romania's $20,072. In terms of purchasing power, Lithuania's GDP per capita (PPP) stands at $54,414, against Romania's $48,712. The country also excels in high-technology exports with $3.7 billion, although Romania leads with $9.7 billion. Inflation rates favor Lithuania at 0.7%, substantially lower than Romania's 5.7%. Furthermore, Lithuania maintains a stronger current account balance at 2.5% of GDP compared to Romania's -8.4%. However, Lithuania faces a higher percentage of imports relative to GDP at 68.9% versus Romania's 41.7%.

Trade and Investment

Lithuania's exports of goods and services constitute 74.1% of its GDP, whereas Romania's figure is considerably lower at 35.6%. Furthermore, Lithuania ranks better in foreign direct investment inflows, achieving 4.2% of GDP compared to Romania's 1.9%. Notably, the level of logistics performance and the quality of trade and transport-related infrastructure in Lithuania is also superior, scoring 3.5 compared to Romania’s 2.9 out of 5. Lithuania stands out in research and development expenditure, which is 1.1% of GDP, significantly outperforming Romania's 0.5%.

Governance and Institutions

In terms of governance, Lithuania demonstrates better outcomes in several key areas. The Control of Corruption indicator is at 0.8, compared to Romania's 0. This suggests a more robust corruption framework in Lithuania. The Government Effectiveness index stands at 1.1 for Lithuania, while Romania's is at -0.1. Indicators of political stability reflect this, as Lithuania scores 0.7 versus Romania's 0.4. Furthermore, regulatory quality and rule of law indicators favor Lithuania at 1.3 and 1.3, respectively, compared to Romania’s poorer performance.

Infrastructure and Technology

Lithuania performs better in the logistics performance index, earning a score of 3.5, ranking it 16th worldwide compared to Romania's 2.9, ranking it 26th. Internet usage is comparable, with 88.5% of the population in Lithuania having access to the Internet, while Romania shows slightly higher usage at 89.2%. Moreover, the number of patent applications from residents in Lithuania is relatively low at 81 compared to Romania's 772, indicating disparities in innovation outputs.

Environment and Sustainability

Lithuania leads in renewable energy consumption with 33.2% of its total energy consumption deriving from renewable sources, while Romania stands at 23.6%. Additionally, Lithuania has a relatively low level of water stress, with only 1.8% of freshwater resources being utilized, in stark contrast to Romania, where the figure is 7.4%. However, Lithuania produces more greenhouse gas emissions per capita at 7.2 tons of CO2 equivalent compared to Romania's 5.6 tons. Both countries are making steps towards sustainability, but Lithuania showcases stronger renewable energy initiatives.