Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Kenya
Kenya: Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling was 3.17 live births per woman in 2024. ▼ Falling
Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Kenya, 1950–2024
Source: Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in live births per woman.
Analysis
In 2024, fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Kenya stood at 3.17 live births per woman. That is the lowest value across all 75 years on record.
The figure is down 1.3% on the previous year and down 17.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Kenya peaked at 7.96 live births per woman in 1966 and was at its lowest, 3.17 live births per woman, in 2024.
That places Kenya 54th out of 236 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 75 years of available data.
Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Kenya, year by year
| Year | live births per woman | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 7.39 live births per woman | — |
| 1951 | 7.4 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1952 | 7.41 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1953 | 7.43 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1954 | 7.43 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1955 | 7.46 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1956 | 7.51 live births per woman | +0.7% |
| 1957 | 7.57 live births per woman | +0.8% |
| 1958 | 7.6 live births per woman | +0.4% |
| 1959 | 7.64 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1960 | 7.65 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1961 | 7.71 live births per woman | +0.8% |
| 1962 | 7.77 live births per woman | +0.7% |
| 1963 | 7.82 live births per woman | +0.6% |
| 1964 | 7.87 live births per woman | +0.7% |
| 1965 | 7.92 live births per woman | +0.7% |
| 1966 | 7.96 live births per woman | +0.4% |
| 1967 | 7.95 live births per woman | -0.0% |
| 1968 | 7.95 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1969 | 7.95 live births per woman | -0.0% |
| 1970 | 7.94 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1971 | 7.92 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1972 | 7.89 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1973 | 7.86 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1974 | 7.82 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1975 | 7.79 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1976 | 7.77 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1977 | 7.73 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1978 | 7.67 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 1979 | 7.6 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1980 | 7.53 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1981 | 7.45 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1982 | 7.34 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 1983 | 7.22 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 1984 | 7.08 live births per woman | -1.9% |
| 1985 | 6.96 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 1986 | 6.84 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 1987 | 6.69 live births per woman | -2.3% |
| 1988 | 6.51 live births per woman | -2.6% |
| 1989 | 6.33 live births per woman | -2.8% |
| 1990 | 6.13 live births per woman | -3.1% |
| 1991 | 5.94 live births per woman | -3.2% |
| 1992 | 5.74 live births per woman | -3.4% |
| 1993 | 5.57 live births per woman | -3.0% |
| 1994 | 5.44 live births per woman | -2.4% |
| 1995 | 5.37 live births per woman | -1.2% |
| 1996 | 5.31 live births per woman | -1.2% |
| 1997 | 5.27 live births per woman | -0.7% |
| 1998 | 5.24 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1999 | 5.18 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 5.14 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 2001 | 5.09 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 2002 | 5.03 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 2003 | 4.94 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2004 | 4.86 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 2005 | 4.8 live births per woman | -1.2% |
| 2006 | 4.75 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 4.72 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 4.66 live births per woman | -1.2% |
| 2009 | 4.57 live births per woman | -2.0% |
| 2010 | 4.45 live births per woman | -2.6% |
| 2011 | 4.28 live births per woman | -3.6% |
| 2012 | 4.12 live births per woman | -3.9% |
| 2013 | 3.96 live births per woman | -3.9% |
| 2014 | 3.84 live births per woman | -2.8% |
| 2015 | 3.77 live births per woman | -2.0% |
| 2016 | 3.69 live births per woman | -2.0% |
| 2017 | 3.61 live births per woman | -2.2% |
| 2018 | 3.54 live births per woman | -2.0% |
| 2019 | 3.43 live births per woman | -2.9% |
| 2020 | 3.36 live births per woman | -2.0% |
| 2021 | 3.31 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 2022 | 3.26 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 2023 | 3.21 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 2024 | 3.17 live births per woman | -1.3% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 3.17 live births per woman is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 3.12 live births per woman, 1.0× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 3.17 live births per woman is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.91 live births per woman, 81% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 7.48 live births per woman | 7.39 live births per woman | 7.64 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1960s | 7.85 live births per woman | 7.65 live births per woman | 7.96 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1970s | 7.8 live births per woman | 7.6 live births per woman | 7.94 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 7 live births per woman | 6.33 live births per woman | 7.53 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.52 live births per woman | 5.18 live births per woman | 6.13 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.86 live births per woman | 4.57 live births per woman | 5.14 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.87 live births per woman | 3.43 live births per woman | 4.45 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.26 live births per woman | 3.17 live births per woman | 3.36 live births per woman | 5 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More education data for Kenya
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 168,396 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 235,728 (2016)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.44 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.44 million (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.74 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 8.04 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.7181 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1453 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Kenya?
- Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Kenya was 3.17 live births per woman in 2024, according to Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest fertility rate vs. average years of schooling recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 7.96 live births per woman in 1966.
- What is the lowest fertility rate vs. average years of schooling recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.17 live births per woman in 2024.
- How does Kenya rank for fertility rate vs. average years of schooling?
- Kenya ranks 54th out of 236 countries with data for 2024.
- Is fertility rate vs. average years of schooling rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kenya data come from?
- The figures come from Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Average number of live births a hypothetical cohort of women would have at the end of their reproductive period if they were subject during their whole lives to the fertility rates of a given period and if they were not subject to mortality.