Malawi vs South Africa: Number of infant deaths
Malawi
25,217 deaths
in 2024
South Africa
28,570 deaths
in 2024
Malawi rank
32nd
South Africa rank
31st
Number of infant deaths over time
- Malawi
- South Africa
How they compare
South Africa currently reports 28,570 deaths against 25,217 deaths in Malawi, a difference of 3,353 deaths.
That makes South Africa's figure about 1.1 times Malawi's.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 48 shared years of data; in 1977 it was South Africa ahead.
Malawi ranks 32nd and South Africa ranks 31st of 199 countries.
Across the 6 decades both report, Malawi averaged higher in 1 and South Africa in 5.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Malawi | South Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 40,992 deaths | 92,671 deaths | 51,679 deaths | South Africa |
| 1980s | 49,128 deaths | 77,194 deaths | 28,065 deaths | South Africa |
| 1990s | 56,027 deaths | 53,006 deaths | 3,021 deaths | Malawi |
| 2000s | 40,728 deaths | 49,340 deaths | 8,612 deaths | South Africa |
| 2010s | 25,431 deaths | 35,356 deaths | 9,925 deaths | South Africa |
| 2020s | 24,690 deaths | 28,733 deaths | 4,043 deaths | South Africa |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher number of infant deaths, Malawi or South Africa?
- South Africa, at 28,570 deaths against 25,217 deaths in Malawi as of 2024.
- What is the difference in number of infant deaths between Malawi and South Africa?
- 3,353 deaths, with South Africa ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Malawi and South Africa?
- 48 years are reported by both, from 1977 to 2024.
- How do Malawi and South Africa rank globally for number of infant deaths?
- Malawi ranks 32nd and South Africa ranks 31st 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 Number of infant deaths. 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 1 .