Number of under-five deaths, female in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Number of under-five deaths, female was 1.33 million in 2024. ▼ Falling
Number of under-five deaths, female in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1990–2024
Source: Estimates developed by the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UNICEF, WHO, World Bank, UN DESA Population Division) at www.childmortality.org.
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 1.33 million for number of under-five deaths, female in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 1.5% on the previous year and down 7.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of under-five deaths, female in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 1.99 million in 1998 and was at its lowest, 1.33 million, in 2024.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa 5th out of 41 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Number of under-five deaths, female in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 1.83 million | — |
| 1991 | 1.89 million | +3.1% |
| 1992 | 1.91 million | +1.4% |
| 1993 | 1.93 million | +1.1% |
| 1994 | 1.93 million | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 1.92 million | -0.8% |
| 1996 | 1.97 million | +3.0% |
| 1997 | 1.96 million | -0.4% |
| 1998 | 1.99 million | +1.5% |
| 1999 | 1.92 million | -3.8% |
| 2000 | 1.90 million | -1.3% |
| 2001 | 1.88 million | -0.6% |
| 2002 | 1.82 million | -3.3% |
| 2003 | 1.78 million | -2.2% |
| 2004 | 1.75 million | -1.9% |
| 2005 | 1.67 million | -4.3% |
| 2006 | 1.63 million | -2.8% |
| 2007 | 1.59 million | -2.3% |
| 2008 | 1.55 million | -2.3% |
| 2009 | 1.56 million | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 1.50 million | -3.8% |
| 2011 | 1.53 million | +2.0% |
| 2012 | 1.45 million | -5.3% |
| 2013 | 1.42 million | -2.1% |
| 2014 | 1.43 million | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 1.42 million | -0.5% |
| 2016 | 1.42 million | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 1.42 million | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 1.37 million | -3.5% |
| 2019 | 1.37 million | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 1.35 million | -1.5% |
| 2021 | 1.39 million | +3.0% |
| 2022 | 1.43 million | +3.0% |
| 2023 | 1.35 million | -5.6% |
| 2024 | 1.33 million | -1.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1.93 million | 1.83 million | 1.99 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.71 million | 1.55 million | 1.90 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.43 million | 1.37 million | 1.53 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.37 million | 1.33 million | 1.43 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
More education data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Population ages 0-14 40.4% (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 56.4% (2025)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 5.14 million (2024)
- School enrollment, primary 97.1% (2024)
- Primary education, teachers, per capita 0.004 units per person (2024)
- Primary education, teachers 5.14 million (2024)
- Primary education, teachers, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 96.0% (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, male 98.2% (2024)
- Labor force, total, per capita 0.3987 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of under-five deaths, female in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Number of under-five deaths, female in Sub-Saharan Africa was 1.33 million in 2024, according to Estimates developed by the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UNICEF, WHO, World Bank, UN DESA Population Division) at www.childmortality.org.
- What is the highest number of under-five deaths, female recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 1.99 million in 1998.
- What is the lowest number of under-five deaths, female recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.33 million in 2024.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for number of under-five deaths, female?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 5th out of 41 groups with data for 2024.
- Is number of under-five deaths, female rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Estimates developed by the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UNICEF, WHO, World Bank, UN DESA Population Division) at www.childmortality.org, published as part of Number of under-five deaths, female. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Number of female children dying before reaching age five.