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Daily Data Insights

Bite-sized insights on how the world is changing, published every weekday.

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A line chart from Our World in Data comparing the GDP per capita of Guyana and the world from 1990 to 2022. Guyana’s GDP per capita line shows a sharp increase after 2020, surpassing the global average, which follows a steadier growth trend. The data is sourced from the World Bank and estimates are adjusted for inflation and for differences in the cost of living between countries.

Guyana’s oil-driven economy has had the largest GDP per capita growth in the world in recent years

Guyana, a small country in South America, has seen the fastest growth in gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in the world over the past decade.

This is illustrated in the chart, which shows GDP per capita for Guyana and the World, based on estimates from the World Bank.

The data is adjusted for inflation, so Guyana’s sharp growth is not due to price changes over time.

A large and sudden expansion in oil production has driven most of this growth. In 2020, Guyana began extracting oil. From 2020 to 2023, the country’s oil production grew 425%, making it a key contributor to global crude oil supply growth.

Over this period, Guyana’s GDP per capita rose from below the global average to well above it.

Read more about economic development and oil production →

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Stacked bar chart showing the amount spent on food per person in the US since the 1950s. This is separated by food consumed at home, and food away from home.

The "food at home" segment has not changed much since the 1950s. But the "food away from home" has increased a lot.

Today, the average American spends about the same on food away from home as at home.

On average, Americans spend about the same amount of money on restaurants and cafes as on food at home

On average, Americans spend about the same amount on food consumed at home as they did in the 1950s. But they spend a lot more in restaurants, cafes, and at work.

The chart shows the average amount of money spent on food, at home and away from home in the United States. This is based on data from the USDA Economic Research Service. It’s adjusted for inflation over time.

Today, the amount spent on food away from home is about the same as what is spent on food at home.

Explore data on food expenditure across the world

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Line chart showing the change in teenage pregnancy rates across regions since 2000. All lines show a reduction over time.

Teenage pregnancy rates have fallen across the world

Teenage pregnancy rates have fallen across all regions in the last few decades.

The chart shows the number of live births per 1,000 women aged 15 to 19 since 2000, based on data compiled by the United Nations.

Globally, rates have fallen by around one-third. This decline has been even more dramatic in some regions. For example, rates have fallen by more than two-thirds in Central and South Asia.

Birth rates have also fallen among adolescents aged 10 to 14 years old, where health concerns for pregnancy in such young girls are even greater.

Explore teenage pregnancy data for individual countries over time

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A line chart showing a sharp increase in the fertility rate in the United States after the Second World War, known as the "baby boom"

The “baby boom” saw a sharp rise in the fertility rate in the United States

When it comes to demographic trends, few are as well known as the “baby boom”.

The baby boom was a sharp rise in the fertility rate toward the end of the Second World War and for decades after. It happened in several countries around the world, but it was especially pronounced in the United States.

Before the baby boom, the US had seen a long-term decline in the fertility rate, down to about 2 children per woman by the 1930s.

During the baby boom, the fertility rate rose sharply, almost doubling to nearly 4 children per woman — levels that hadn’t been seen since the beginning of the 20th century. By the early 1970s, the fertility rate had returned to about 2 children per woman. Today, it’s just over 1.6.

It’s estimated that more than 70 million people were born in the US between 1946 and 1964, the official years of the baby boom according to the US Census Bureau. By 1964, this generation comprised almost 40% of the nation’s population.

As such a large generation, “baby boomers” have played a significant role in shaping many social, economic, and political trends in modern US history.

Learn more about fertility rates over time →

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Line chart showing a decline in road deaths in the UK since 1970. This has fallen from 8,000 to less than 2,000.

Road deaths in the United Kingdom have fallen by three-quarters since 1970

The number of people dying in road accidents in the United Kingdom has fallen by around three-quarters since 1970.

The chart shows the number of road deaths over time, based on data from the OECD, which we just updated. This includes the deaths of pedestrians, drivers, passengers, and cyclists.

In the early 1970s, there were around 8,000 road deaths per year. This has dropped below 2,000 in recent years. Deaths reached a low in 2020 due to reduced traffic from the COVID-19 pandemic but have rebounded slightly since then.

This multi-decade decline is even steeper when we look at the number of deaths per kilometer driven.

Explore road death data for other countries

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This chart displays the share of electricity production from wind as a percentage of total electricity for several countries between 1985 and 2023. Denmark shows the highest share, peaking above 50% by 2023.

Denmark generates a larger share of its electricity from wind than any other country

In 2023, wind power generated nearly 60% of Denmark’s electricity. This made Denmark the country with the highest share of wind in its electricity mix. This is based on data from Ember.

Wind also contributes significantly to Denmark’s broader energy system. Data from the Energy Institute shows that wind power accounts for over a quarter of Denmark’s total primary energy consumption — the largest figure globally.

Denmark also ranks first in per capita wind power generation, with Sweden close behind.

Explore more data on energy sources in our Data Explorer →

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Line chart showing the share of people who said they do not want homosexual neighbours. This has fallen in many countries in recent decades.

Many countries have become much more supportive of same-sex relationships

When I was born in 1993, one-third of people in the United Kingdom said they “would not want homosexual neighbors”. Today, that’s less than 5%.

As you can see in the chart, the acceptance of same-sex relationships has increased in many other countries, too. This data comes from the Integrated Values Survey.

Attitudes to homosexuality tend to be far more positive in Western Europe and North and South America than in other parts of the world. In many countries across Eastern Europe, Asia, and Africa, the majority of surveyed respondents still say they would not want homosexual neighbors.

Explore the data on attitudes to homosexuality across the world

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What share of children die before their fifth birthday?

What could be more tragic than the death of a young child? Child mortality, the death of children under the age of five, is still extremely common in our world today.

The historical data makes clear that it doesn’t have to be this way: it is possible for societies to protect their children and reduce child mortality to very low rates. For child mortality to reach low levels, many things have to go right at the same time: good healthcare, good nutrition, clean water and sanitation, maternal health, and high living standards. We can, therefore, think of child mortality as a proxy indicator of a country’s living conditions.

The chart shows our long-run data on child mortality, which allows you to see how child mortality has changed in countries around the world.

Explore and learn more about this data
Explore and learn more about this data

Share of population living in extreme povertyWorld Bank

Life expectancy at birthLong-run estimates collated from multiple sources by Our World in Data

Per capita CO₂ emissionsLong-run estimates from the Global Carbon Budget

GDP per capitaLong-run estimates from the Maddison Project Database

Share of people that are undernourishedFAO

Literacy rateLong-run estimates collated from multiple sources by Our World in Data

Share of the population with access to electricityWorld Bank

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