Botswana vs South Africa: Child mortality rate
Botswana
3.33 deaths per 100 live births
in 2024
South Africa
3.51 deaths per 100 live births
in 2024
Botswana rank
55th
South Africa rank
53rd
Child mortality rate over time
- Botswana
- South Africa
How they compare
South Africa currently reports 3.51 deaths per 100 live births against 3.33 deaths per 100 live births in Botswana, a difference of 0.18 deaths per 100 live births.
That makes South Africa's figure about 1.1 times Botswana's.
The two have swapped places 4 times across 51 shared years of data; in 1974 it was South Africa ahead.
Botswana ranks 55th and South Africa ranks 53rd of 199 countries.
Across the 6 decades both report, Botswana averaged higher in 3 and South Africa in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Botswana | South Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 9.19 deaths per 100 live births | 11.49 deaths per 100 live births | 2.3 deaths per 100 live births | South Africa |
| 1980s | 5.93 deaths per 100 live births | 7.51 deaths per 100 live births | 1.58 deaths per 100 live births | South Africa |
| 1990s | 6.54 deaths per 100 live births | 6.03 deaths per 100 live births | 0.5102 deaths per 100 live births | Botswana |
| 2000s | 7.15 deaths per 100 live births | 7.31 deaths per 100 live births | 0.1626 deaths per 100 live births | South Africa |
| 2010s | 4.86 deaths per 100 live births | 4 deaths per 100 live births | 0.8553 deaths per 100 live births | Botswana |
| 2020s | 3.59 deaths per 100 live births | 3.44 deaths per 100 live births | 0.1502 deaths per 100 live births | Botswana |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher child mortality rate, Botswana or South Africa?
- South Africa, at 3.51 deaths per 100 live births against 3.33 deaths per 100 live births in Botswana as of 2024.
- What is the difference in child mortality rate between Botswana and South Africa?
- 0.18 deaths per 100 live births, with South Africa ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Botswana and South Africa?
- 51 years are reported by both, from 1974 to 2024.
- How do Botswana and South Africa rank globally for child mortality rate?
- Botswana ranks 55th and South Africa ranks 53rd of 199 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Child mortality rate. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Estimated number of deaths of children aged under five years, per 100 live births .