Number of under-five deaths in Malawi
Malawi: Number of under-five deaths was 32,177 in 2024. ▼ Falling
Number of under-five deaths in Malawi, 1966–2024
Source: UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Analysis
Malawi recorded 32,177 for number of under-five deaths in 2024.
That represents a change of down 0.1% on the previous year and down 11.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of under-five deaths in Malawi peaked at 121,200 in 2001 and was at its lowest, 31,391, in 2020.
Malawi ranks 33rd of 197 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 59 years of available data.
Number of under-five deaths in Malawi, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1966 | 75,250 | — |
| 1967 | 76,843 | +2.1% |
| 1968 | 78,345 | +2.0% |
| 1969 | 79,819 | +1.9% |
| 1970 | 80,823 | +1.3% |
| 1971 | 81,328 | +0.6% |
| 1972 | 81,408 | +0.1% |
| 1973 | 81,160 | -0.3% |
| 1974 | 80,596 | -0.7% |
| 1975 | 79,932 | -0.8% |
| 1976 | 79,302 | -0.8% |
| 1977 | 78,636 | -0.8% |
| 1978 | 78,055 | -0.7% |
| 1979 | 77,714 | -0.4% |
| 1980 | 78,071 | +0.5% |
| 1981 | 78,963 | +1.1% |
| 1982 | 80,634 | +2.1% |
| 1983 | 83,316 | +3.3% |
| 1984 | 86,922 | +4.3% |
| 1985 | 91,014 | +4.7% |
| 1986 | 94,767 | +4.1% |
| 1987 | 97,492 | +2.9% |
| 1988 | 100,255 | +2.8% |
| 1989 | 102,614 | +2.4% |
| 1990 | 103,996 | +1.3% |
| 1991 | 104,631 | +0.6% |
| 1992 | 104,445 | -0.2% |
| 1993 | 104,030 | -0.4% |
| 1994 | 102,477 | -1.5% |
| 1995 | 98,825 | -3.6% |
| 1996 | 96,031 | -2.8% |
| 1997 | 94,178 | -1.9% |
| 1998 | 91,828 | -2.5% |
| 1999 | 88,242 | -3.9% |
| 2000 | 83,418 | -5.5% |
| 2001 | 121,200 | +45.3% |
| 2002 | 70,801 | -41.6% |
| 2003 | 65,841 | -7.0% |
| 2004 | 61,618 | -6.4% |
| 2005 | 58,540 | -5.0% |
| 2006 | 56,480 | -3.5% |
| 2007 | 54,603 | -3.3% |
| 2008 | 52,315 | -4.2% |
| 2009 | 49,850 | -4.7% |
| 2010 | 47,352 | -5.0% |
| 2011 | 44,062 | -6.9% |
| 2012 | 40,615 | -7.8% |
| 2013 | 37,789 | -7.0% |
| 2014 | 36,185 | -4.2% |
| 2015 | 34,514 | -4.6% |
| 2016 | 33,483 | -3.0% |
| 2017 | 32,351 | -3.4% |
| 2018 | 31,555 | -2.5% |
| 2019 | 31,489 | -0.2% |
| 2020 | 31,391 | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 31,530 | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 32,038 | +1.6% |
| 2023 | 32,221 | +0.6% |
| 2024 | 32,177 | -0.1% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 32,177 is below the median for low income countries, which is 52,477, 61% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 32,177 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 31,761, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Number of under-five deaths in Malawi changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | +45.3% | 83,418 | 121,200 |
| 2002 | -41.6% | 121,200 | 70,801 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 77,564 | 75,250 | 79,819 | 4 |
| 1970s | 79,895 | 77,714 | 81,408 | 10 |
| 1980s | 89,405 | 78,071 | 102,614 | 10 |
| 1990s | 98,868 | 88,242 | 104,631 | 10 |
| 2000s | 67,467 | 49,850 | 121,200 | 10 |
| 2010s | 36,940 | 31,489 | 47,352 | 10 |
| 2020s | 31,871 | 31,391 | 32,221 | 5 |
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)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 6,399 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.61 % 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 0.0714 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.63 % 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 0.0718 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of under-five deaths in Malawi?
- Number of under-five deaths in Malawi was 32,177 in 2024, according to UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
- What is the highest number of under-five deaths recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 121,200 in 2001.
- What is the lowest number of under-five deaths recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 31,391 in 2020.
- How does Malawi rank for number of under-five deaths?
- Malawi ranks 33rd out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
- Is number of under-five deaths rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 11.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), published as part of Number of under-five deaths. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Number of children dying before reaching age five.