What is child mortality in Lesotho?

Child mortality in Lesotho was 6 deaths per 100 live births in 2024, according to Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest child mortality recorded in Lesotho?

The highest recorded value was 40.72 deaths per 100 live births in 1800.

What is the lowest child mortality recorded in Lesotho?

The lowest recorded value was 6 deaths per 100 live births in 2024.

How does Lesotho rank for child mortality?

Lesotho ranks 21st out of 203 countries with data for 2024.

Is child mortality rising or falling in Lesotho?

Over the last ten years it is down 22.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.

Where does this Lesotho data come from?

The figures come from Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Child mortality. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Child mortality in Lesotho

Name: Child mortality in Lesotho
Creator: Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Lesotho: Child mortality was 6 deaths per 100 live births in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)

6 deaths per 100 live births

Change on year

down 2.2%

World rank

21st

of 203 countries

All-time high

40.72 deaths per 100 live births

in 1800

All-time low

6 deaths per 100 live births

in 2024

Years of data

225

1800–2024

Child mortality in Lesotho, 1800–2024

Source: Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths per 100 live births.

Analysis

The most recent figure for child mortality in Lesotho is 6 deaths per 100 live births, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 225 years on record.

That represents a change of down 2.2% on the previous year and down 22.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, child mortality in Lesotho peaked at 40.72 deaths per 100 live births in 1800 and was at its lowest, 6 deaths per 100 live births, in 2024.

That places Lesotho 21st out of 203 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 225 years of available data.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1800s	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	10
1810s	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	10
1820s	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	10
1830s	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	10
1840s	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	10
1850s	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	10
1860s	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	10
1870s	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	10
1880s	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	10
1890s	40.71 deaths per 100 live births	40.66 deaths per 100 live births	40.72 deaths per 100 live births	10
1900s	40.4 deaths per 100 live births	40.09 deaths per 100 live births	40.64 deaths per 100 live births	10
1910s	39.58 deaths per 100 live births	39.15 deaths per 100 live births	40 deaths per 100 live births	10
1920s	38.62 deaths per 100 live births	38.19 deaths per 100 live births	39.05 deaths per 100 live births	10
1930s	36.7 deaths per 100 live births	35.32 deaths per 100 live births	38.1 deaths per 100 live births	10
1940s	29.64 deaths per 100 live births	24.78 deaths per 100 live births	35.02 deaths per 100 live births	10
1950s	21.3 deaths per 100 live births	18.75 deaths per 100 live births	23.84 deaths per 100 live births	10
1960s	18.43 deaths per 100 live births	17.92 deaths per 100 live births	18.62 deaths per 100 live births	10
1970s	15.42 deaths per 100 live births	12.86 deaths per 100 live births	17.55 deaths per 100 live births	10
1980s	10.1 deaths per 100 live births	8.57 deaths per 100 live births	12.24 deaths per 100 live births	10
1990s	9.4 deaths per 100 live births	8.44 deaths per 100 live births	10.63 deaths per 100 live births	10
2000s	11.1 deaths per 100 live births	9.91 deaths per 100 live births	11.47 deaths per 100 live births	10
2010s	7.68 deaths per 100 live births	6.81 deaths per 100 live births	9.09 deaths per 100 live births	10
2020s	6.27 deaths per 100 live births	6 deaths per 100 live births	6.63 deaths per 100 live births	5

Countries ranked near Lesotho

18 Cote d'Ivoire 6.45 deaths per 100 live births compare
19 Madagascar 6.24 deaths per 100 live births compare
20 Sudan 6.16 deaths per 100 live births compare
22 Mozambique 5.94 deaths per 100 live births compare
23 Togo 5.61 deaths per 100 live births compare
24 Pakistan 5.6 deaths per 100 live births compare

See the full ranking of 203 places →

More health data for Lesotho

Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,227 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
Number of infants who die before age 1 382 deaths (2100)
Deaths in armed conflicts based on where they occurred 0 deaths (2026)
Deaths in armed conflicts by region 0 deaths (2026)
Age population, age 25, male, interpolated 20,203 (2025)
Age population, age 25, female, interpolated 20,491 (2025)
Age population, age 24, male, interpolated 20,958 (2025)
Age population, age 24, female, interpolated 21,166 (2025)
Age population, age 23, male, interpolated 22,125 (2025)
Age population, age 23, female, interpolated 22,257 (2025)

All data for Lesotho →

Frequently asked questions

What is child mortality in Lesotho?: Child mortality in Lesotho was 6 deaths per 100 live births in 2024, according to Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest child mortality recorded in Lesotho?: The highest recorded value was 40.72 deaths per 100 live births in 1800.
What is the lowest child mortality recorded in Lesotho?: The lowest recorded value was 6 deaths per 100 live births in 2024.
How does Lesotho rank for child mortality?: Lesotho ranks 21st out of 203 countries with data for 2024.
Is child mortality rising or falling in Lesotho?: Over the last ten years it is down 22.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Lesotho data come from?: The figures come from Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Child mortality. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 225 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator: Child mortality
Unit: deaths per 100 live births
Source: Gapminder (2015); UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 203 places, 42,924 data points, 1800–2024
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

The estimated share of newborns who die before reaching the age of five.