Share of births attended by skilled health staff in Malawi
Malawi: Share of births attended by skilled health staff was 96.4% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of births attended by skilled health staff in Malawi, 1992–2020
Source: Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and UNICEF, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of total.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 96.4% for share of births attended by skilled health staff in 2020. That is the highest value across all 11 years on record.
The figure is up 35.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of births attended by skilled health staff in Malawi peaked at 96.4% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 53.6%, in 2006.
That places Malawi 101st out of 169 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 11 years of available data.
Share of births attended by skilled health staff in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % of total | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 54.7% | — |
| 2000 | 55.6% | +1.6% |
| 2002 | 60.5% | +8.8% |
| 2004 | 56.1% | -7.3% |
| 2005 | 56.1% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 53.6% | -4.5% |
| 2008 | 68.0% | +26.9% |
| 2010 | 71.4% | +5.0% |
| 2014 | 87.4% | +22.4% |
| 2016 | 89.8% | +2.7% |
| 2020 | 96.4% | +7.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 54.7% | 54.7% | 54.7% | 1 |
| 2000s | 58.3% | 53.6% | 68.0% | 6 |
| 2010s | 82.9% | 71.4% | 89.8% | 3 |
| 2020s | 96.4% | 96.4% | 96.4% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More health data for Malawi
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -0.8368 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.9312 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 856.3 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 6,399 deaths (2100)
- Population ages 0-14, female, annual growth rate 1.08 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per capita 0.2005 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, annual growth rate 1.18 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per capita 0.2007 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of births attended by skilled health staff in Malawi?
- Share of births attended by skilled health staff in Malawi was 96.4% in 2020, according to Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and UNICEF, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of births attended by skilled health staff recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 96.4% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of births attended by skilled health staff recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 53.6% in 2006.
- How does Malawi rank for share of births attended by skilled health staff?
- Malawi ranks 101st out of 169 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of births attended by skilled health staff rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 35.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and UNICEF, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of births attended by skilled health staff. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 11 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Skilled health staff refers to professionals trained to give the necessary supervision, care, and advice to women during pregnancy, labor, and the postpartum period; to conduct deliveries on their own; and to care for newborns.