Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Nigeria
Nigeria: Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling was 4.38 live births per woman in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
4.38 live births per woman
Change on year
down 2.2%
World rank
16th
of 236 countries
All-time high
6.92 live births per woman
in 1978
All-time low
4.38 live births per woman
in 2024
Years of data
75
1950–2024
Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Nigeria, 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
The most recent figure for fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Nigeria is 4.38 live births per woman, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 75 years on record.
That represents a change of down 2.2% on the previous year and down 22.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Nigeria peaked at 6.92 live births per woman in 1978 and was at its lowest, 4.38 live births per woman, in 2024.
Nigeria ranks 16th of 236 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 75 years of available data.
Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | live births per woman | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 6.42 live births per woman | — |
| 1951 | 6.42 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1952 | 6.39 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1953 | 6.4 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1954 | 6.4 live births per woman | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 6.4 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1956 | 6.41 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1957 | 6.4 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1958 | 6.39 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1959 | 6.38 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1960 | 6.36 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1961 | 6.35 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1962 | 6.36 live births per woman | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 6.35 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1964 | 6.36 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1965 | 6.37 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1966 | 6.39 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1967 | 6.4 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1968 | 6.42 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1969 | 6.44 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1970 | 6.47 live births per woman | +0.4% |
| 1971 | 6.53 live births per woman | +1.0% |
| 1972 | 6.58 live births per woman | +0.7% |
| 1973 | 6.63 live births per woman | +0.8% |
| 1974 | 6.7 live births per woman | +1.1% |
| 1975 | 6.77 live births per woman | +1.0% |
| 1976 | 6.81 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1977 | 6.86 live births per woman | +0.8% |
| 1978 | 6.92 live births per woman | +0.9% |
| 1979 | 6.89 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1980 | 6.85 live births per woman | -0.6% |
| 1981 | 6.82 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1982 | 6.8 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1983 | 6.78 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1984 | 6.7 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1985 | 6.62 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 1986 | 6.56 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1987 | 6.5 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 1988 | 6.5 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1989 | 6.49 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1990 | 6.46 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1991 | 6.43 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1992 | 6.39 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1993 | 6.35 live births per woman | -0.6% |
| 1994 | 6.32 live births per woman | -0.6% |
| 1995 | 6.27 live births per woman | -0.7% |
| 1996 | 6.22 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1997 | 6.14 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 1998 | 6.07 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1999 | 6.08 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 2000 | 6.12 live births per woman | +0.7% |
| 2001 | 6.13 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 6.12 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 2003 | 6.1 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 6.09 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 6.06 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 6.05 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 6.03 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 2008 | 6.02 live births per woman | -0.0% |
| 2009 | 5.99 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 5.95 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 2011 | 5.89 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 2012 | 5.8 live births per woman | -1.6% |
| 2013 | 5.69 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2014 | 5.62 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 2015 | 5.5 live births per woman | -2.1% |
| 2016 | 5.34 live births per woman | -2.9% |
| 2017 | 5.18 live births per woman | -3.0% |
| 2018 | 5.02 live births per woman | -3.1% |
| 2019 | 4.86 live births per woman | -3.2% |
| 2020 | 4.7 live births per woman | -3.3% |
| 2021 | 4.64 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 2022 | 4.55 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2023 | 4.48 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 2024 | 4.38 live births per woman | -2.2% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's 4.38 live births per woman is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 3.12 live births per woman, 1.4× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's 4.38 live births per woman is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.91 live births per woman, 1.1× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 6.4 live births per woman | 6.38 live births per woman | 6.42 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1960s | 6.38 live births per woman | 6.35 live births per woman | 6.44 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1970s | 6.72 live births per woman | 6.47 live births per woman | 6.92 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.66 live births per woman | 6.49 live births per woman | 6.85 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 6.27 live births per woman | 6.07 live births per woman | 6.46 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 6.07 live births per woman | 5.99 live births per woman | 6.13 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.49 live births per woman | 4.86 live births per woman | 5.95 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.55 live births per woman | 4.38 live births per woman | 4.7 live births per woman | 5 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More education data for Nigeria
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 912,245 (2021)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.08 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.24 million (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 15.20 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 33.42 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.18 % change on previous year (2021)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1466 units per person (2023)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Nigeria?
- Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling in Nigeria was 4.38 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 Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 6.92 live births per woman in 1978.
- What is the lowest fertility rate vs. average years of schooling recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.38 live births per woman in 2024.
- How does Nigeria rank for fertility rate vs. average years of schooling?
- Nigeria ranks 16th out of 236 countries with data for 2024.
- Is fertility rate vs. average years of schooling rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 22.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nigeria 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.
Download this data
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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.