Female and male life expectancy at birth in years in Zambia
Zambia: Female and male life expectancy at birth in years was 63.94 in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
63.94
Change on year
up 1.9%
World rank
198th
of 236 countries
All-time high
63.94
in 2023
All-time low
44.71
in 1996
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Female and male life expectancy at birth in years in Zambia, 1950–2023
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Zambia recorded 63.94 for female and male life expectancy at birth in years in 2023. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.9% on the previous year and up 11.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, female and male life expectancy at birth in years in Zambia peaked at 63.94 in 2023 and was at its lowest, 44.71, in 1996.
Zambia ranks 198th of 236 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Female and male life expectancy at birth in years in Zambia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 45.71 | — |
| 1951 | 46.12 | +0.9% |
| 1952 | 46.54 | +0.9% |
| 1953 | 46.96 | +0.9% |
| 1954 | 47.36 | +0.8% |
| 1955 | 47.73 | +0.8% |
| 1956 | 48.09 | +0.8% |
| 1957 | 48.42 | +0.7% |
| 1958 | 48.8 | +0.8% |
| 1959 | 49.16 | +0.7% |
| 1960 | 49.58 | +0.9% |
| 1961 | 50 | +0.8% |
| 1962 | 50.26 | +0.5% |
| 1963 | 50.56 | +0.6% |
| 1964 | 49.85 | -1.4% |
| 1965 | 50.95 | +2.2% |
| 1966 | 51.15 | +0.4% |
| 1967 | 51.34 | +0.4% |
| 1968 | 51.53 | +0.4% |
| 1969 | 51.84 | +0.6% |
| 1970 | 52.22 | +0.7% |
| 1971 | 52.68 | +0.9% |
| 1972 | 53.14 | +0.9% |
| 1973 | 53.72 | +1.1% |
| 1974 | 54.16 | +0.8% |
| 1975 | 54.48 | +0.6% |
| 1976 | 54.75 | +0.5% |
| 1977 | 54.84 | +0.1% |
| 1978 | 54.85 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 54.39 | -0.9% |
| 1980 | 53.79 | -1.1% |
| 1981 | 53.23 | -1.1% |
| 1982 | 52.53 | -1.3% |
| 1983 | 51.93 | -1.1% |
| 1984 | 51.09 | -1.6% |
| 1985 | 50.23 | -1.7% |
| 1986 | 49.46 | -1.5% |
| 1987 | 48.83 | -1.3% |
| 1988 | 48.2 | -1.3% |
| 1989 | 47.47 | -1.5% |
| 1990 | 46.91 | -1.2% |
| 1991 | 46.2 | -1.5% |
| 1992 | 45.75 | -1.0% |
| 1993 | 45.43 | -0.7% |
| 1994 | 45.2 | -0.5% |
| 1995 | 44.92 | -0.6% |
| 1996 | 44.71 | -0.4% |
| 1997 | 44.72 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 44.8 | +0.2% |
| 1999 | 45.12 | +0.7% |
| 2000 | 45.8 | +1.5% |
| 2001 | 46.65 | +1.9% |
| 2002 | 47.7 | +2.3% |
| 2003 | 48.72 | +2.1% |
| 2004 | 49.9 | +2.4% |
| 2005 | 51.03 | +2.3% |
| 2006 | 51.93 | +1.8% |
| 2007 | 52.88 | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 53.69 | +1.5% |
| 2009 | 54.72 | +1.9% |
| 2010 | 55.48 | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 56.19 | +1.3% |
| 2012 | 56.95 | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 57.62 | +1.2% |
| 2014 | 58.09 | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 58.55 | +0.8% |
| 2016 | 58.92 | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 59.21 | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 59.69 | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 60.35 | +1.1% |
| 2020 | 60.73 | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 59.79 | -1.5% |
| 2022 | 62.77 | +5.0% |
| 2023 | 63.94 | +1.9% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 63.94 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 65.33, 98% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 63.94 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 62.07, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 47.49 | 45.71 | 49.16 | 10 |
| 1960s | 50.7 | 49.58 | 51.84 | 10 |
| 1970s | 53.92 | 52.22 | 54.85 | 10 |
| 1980s | 50.68 | 47.47 | 53.79 | 10 |
| 1990s | 45.38 | 44.71 | 46.91 | 10 |
| 2000s | 50.3 | 45.8 | 54.72 | 10 |
| 2010s | 58.1 | 55.48 | 60.35 | 10 |
| 2020s | 61.81 | 59.79 | 63.94 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
More health data for Zambia
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.09 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.7971 % change on previous year (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 8,894 (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.68 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0743 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.69 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per capita 0.0744 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is female and male life expectancy at birth in years in Zambia?
- Female and male life expectancy at birth in years in Zambia was 63.94 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest female and male life expectancy at birth in years recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 63.94 in 2023.
- What is the lowest female and male life expectancy at birth in years recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 44.71 in 1996.
- How does Zambia rank for female and male life expectancy at birth in years?
- Zambia ranks 198th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is female and male life expectancy at birth in years rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zambia data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Female and male life expectancy at birth in years. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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