What is infant mortality rate by sex in Lesotho?

Infant mortality rate by sex in Lesotho was 5.03 deaths per 100 live births in 2024, according to United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest infant mortality rate by sex recorded in Lesotho?

The highest recorded value was 14.93 deaths per 100 live births in 1952.

What is the lowest infant mortality rate by sex recorded in Lesotho?

The lowest recorded value was 5.03 deaths per 100 live births in 2024.

How does Lesotho rank for infant mortality rate by sex?

Lesotho ranks 11th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.

Is infant mortality rate by sex rising or falling in Lesotho?

Over the last ten years it is down 20.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.

Where does this Lesotho data come from?

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

Infant mortality rate by sex in Lesotho

Name: Infant mortality rate by sex in Lesotho
Creator: United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Lesotho: Infant mortality rate by sex was 5.03 deaths per 100 live births in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)

5.03 deaths per 100 live births

Change on year

down 3.4%

World rank

11th

of 199 countries

All-time high

14.93 deaths per 100 live births

in 1952

All-time low

5.03 deaths per 100 live births

in 2024

Years of data

1952–2024

Infant mortality rate by sex in Lesotho, 1952–2024

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

Analysis

In 2024, infant mortality rate by sex in Lesotho stood at 5.03 deaths per 100 live births. That is the lowest value across all 73 years on record.

The figure is down 3.4% on the previous year and down 20.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, infant mortality rate by sex in Lesotho peaked at 14.93 deaths per 100 live births in 1952 and was at its lowest, 5.03 deaths per 100 live births, in 2024.

That places Lesotho 11th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 73 years of available data.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1950s	13.81 deaths per 100 live births	13 deaths per 100 live births	14.93 deaths per 100 live births	8
1960s	13.47 deaths per 100 live births	12.98 deaths per 100 live births	13.79 deaths per 100 live births	10
1970s	12.08 deaths per 100 live births	10.33 deaths per 100 live births	13.41 deaths per 100 live births	10
1980s	8.25 deaths per 100 live births	7.04 deaths per 100 live births	9.87 deaths per 100 live births	10
1990s	6.77 deaths per 100 live births	6.68 deaths per 100 live births	6.9 deaths per 100 live births	10
2000s	7 deaths per 100 live births	6.71 deaths per 100 live births	7.55 deaths per 100 live births	10
2010s	6.19 deaths per 100 live births	5.68 deaths per 100 live births	6.59 deaths per 100 live births	10
2020s	5.32 deaths per 100 live births	5.03 deaths per 100 live births	5.56 deaths per 100 live births	5

Countries ranked near Lesotho

8 Central African Republic 5.23 deaths per 100 live births compare
9 Chad 5.04 deaths per 100 live births compare
10 Democratic Republic of Congo 5.03 deaths per 100 live births compare
12 Sierra Leone 4.93 deaths per 100 live births compare
13 Afghanistan 4.45 deaths per 100 live births compare
14 Mali 4.33 deaths per 100 live births compare

See the full ranking of 199 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 infant mortality rate by sex in Lesotho?: Infant mortality rate by sex in Lesotho was 5.03 deaths per 100 live births in 2024, according to United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest infant mortality rate by sex recorded in Lesotho?: The highest recorded value was 14.93 deaths per 100 live births in 1952.
What is the lowest infant mortality rate by sex recorded in Lesotho?: The lowest recorded value was 5.03 deaths per 100 live births in 2024.
How does Lesotho rank for infant mortality rate by sex?: Lesotho ranks 11th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
Is infant mortality rate by sex rising or falling in Lesotho?: Over the last ten years it is down 20.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Lesotho data come from?: The figures come from United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Infant mortality rate by sex. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 73 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator: Infant mortality rate by sex
Unit: deaths per 100 live births
Source: United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 199 places, 12,987 data points, 1950–2024
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

The estimated number of deaths of female children aged under one year, per 100 live births .