Mobile money accounts are surging globally, especially in Africa and Asia

Over the last 60 years, the 32 high-income countries in the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC) steadily increased the foreign aid they sent abroad. In total, aid rose from $39 billion to $213 billion, adjusted for inflation.

But while aid has grown in dollar terms, it has shrunk as a share of national income. Between 1960 and 2000, foreign aid as a percentage of national income fell sharply from 0.49% to 0.21%. Since then, it has recovered slightly to 0.37% but remains far below its 1960 level.

As a result, only five countries currently meet the UN’s target of dedicating at least 0.7% of their national income to foreign aid.

Explore foreign aid given as a share of national income by all countries →

The share of births that are twins has changed over time.

The chart shows data for France, Canada, the United States, and England & Wales in the Human Multiple Births Database.

As you can see, twin births have risen dramatically since the 1980s.

One reason is the use of reproductive technologies such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), which have made it possible for many more couples to conceive. During procedures like IVF, multiple eggs can be used at the same time to maximize the chances of a successful pregnancy, which can lead to twin births.

Another reason for the rise in twin births is that the average age of women at childbirth has risen. Older women are more likely to have twin births, even without using reproductive technologies.

Twin births are a chance event, but data shows they can also be influenced by societal changes and reproductive technologies.

Explore trends in twin births for other countries →

To mitigate the negative impacts of climate change, the world needs to quickly transition from fossil fuels to low-carbon energy sources such as solar power.

The chart shows how much this transition has accelerated in the last two decades.

In 2004, it took the world about a year to add one gigawatt of solar power capacity. By 2023, the same amount was added, on average, every single day.

For reference, a gigawatt of solar is enough to power approximately 200,000 homes in the US.

Much of this growth has been driven by China, which by 2023 accounted for about 43% of the cumulative installed capacity worldwide.

A big reason for this acceleration has been a large decrease in the price of solar panels. Since 2001, the price has dropped by about 95%, from $6.21 to $0.31 per watt.

Learn more about why renewables like solar became so cheap so fast →

Religion means less to people in some English-speaking countries than it did 30 years ago.

The chart shows a clear downward trend in the share of people who see religion as important in their lives. This is based on surveys across the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, from 1993 to 2022.

The United States stands out as the country with the highest percentage of people who consider religion important, though this has declined from 79% to 61%. The shift was even sharper in Canada, falling from 61% to 35%.

Religion was already less important to people in Australia, the UK, and New Zealand but in all three countries, this share dropped by more than a quarter.

Explore this data on the importance of religion for many more countries →

The “golden age of antibiotics” lasted from the early 1940s to the late 1960s. It was a period of rapid innovation that transformed medicine. As highlighted in this chart, nearly two-thirds of all antibiotic drug classes were introduced during this period.

Scientists explored natural sources — such as fungi and bacteria — and synthetic sources.

This led to breakthroughs in antibiotics derived from soil-dwelling bacteria, such as streptomycin, tetracyclines, and macrolides, and the mass production of penicillin, which Alexander Fleming discovered in 1928.

However, progress slowed after the 1970s as pharmaceutical companies shifted their focus to chronic diseases. Today, there is a renewed need for innovation to tackle antibiotic resistance.

Read my article on the golden age of antibiotics and how we can spark a new one →

We can expect to live more than twice as long as our ancestors in 1900.

As the chart shows, global average life expectancy was just 32 years at the beginning of the 20th century.

This was a short life by today’s standards: in 2023, the average life expectancy had increased to 73 years. That’s 41 years longer.

This remarkable increase is due to improved living standards, like better nutrition and sanitation, and advances in healthcare, such as antibiotics and vaccines.

While large declines in child mortality have been crucial, they have not been the only reason for the increase in life expectancy; it has increased across all ages.

Read more in our article “Twice as long – life expectancy around the world” →

Lithium is a critical component in many industries, including pharmaceuticals, optics, ceramics, and glass. But it’s best known for its use in batteries. Most rechargeable batteries in mobile phones, laptops, and consumer electronics are made from lithium-ion chemistries.

It’s also receiving increasing attention as a critical mineral in batteries for electric cars and storage for renewable energy.

Just a handful of countries supply the world’s lithium. In the chart, you can see each country’s share of global mined production in 2023. Australia produced almost half. Combined with China, Chile, and Argentina, these four countries produced over 90% of the total.

Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia form the so-called “lithium triangle”, which are large lithium deposits that span across these three countries. While Bolivia has huge lithium resources, it has produced very little so far.

This data comes from the United States Geological Survey.

Explore which countries produce other critical minerals in our data explorer →