Number of under-five deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income): Number of under-five deaths was 2.93 million in 2024. ▼ Falling
Number of under-five deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), 1990–2024
Source: UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
Analysis
In 2024, number of under-five deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) stood at 2.93 million. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 1.4% on the previous year and down 6.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of under-five deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) peaked at 4.29 million in 1998 and was at its lowest, 2.93 million, in 2024.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) 8th out of 47 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Number of under-five deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 3.93 million | — |
| 1991 | 4.05 million | +3.1% |
| 1992 | 4.11 million | +1.4% |
| 1993 | 4.15 million | +1.1% |
| 1994 | 4.15 million | -0.0% |
| 1995 | 4.12 million | -0.7% |
| 1996 | 4.24 million | +2.9% |
| 1997 | 4.23 million | -0.3% |
| 1998 | 4.29 million | +1.5% |
| 1999 | 4.14 million | -3.6% |
| 2000 | 4.09 million | -1.2% |
| 2001 | 4.07 million | -0.6% |
| 2002 | 3.94 million | -3.0% |
| 2003 | 3.86 million | -2.1% |
| 2004 | 3.79 million | -1.7% |
| 2005 | 3.64 million | -4.0% |
| 2006 | 3.55 million | -2.6% |
| 2007 | 3.47 million | -2.2% |
| 2008 | 3.40 million | -2.1% |
| 2009 | 3.41 million | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 3.29 million | -3.6% |
| 2011 | 3.35 million | +1.8% |
| 2012 | 3.18 million | -5.0% |
| 2013 | 3.12 million | -1.9% |
| 2014 | 3.14 million | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 3.12 million | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 3.11 million | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 3.11 million | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 3.01 million | -3.3% |
| 2019 | 3.01 million | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 2.97 million | -1.4% |
| 2021 | 3.05 million | +2.8% |
| 2022 | 3.14 million | +2.8% |
| 2023 | 2.97 million | -5.3% |
| 2024 | 2.93 million | -1.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 4.14 million | 3.93 million | 4.29 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.72 million | 3.40 million | 4.09 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.15 million | 3.01 million | 3.35 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.01 million | 2.93 million | 3.14 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
More health data for Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
- Population ages 50-54, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, male, annual growth rate 3.59 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, female, per capita 0.0125 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, female, annual growth rate 3.3 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 50-54, male, per capita 0.0147 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 50-54, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 50-54, male, annual growth rate 3.53 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 50-54, female, per capita 0.0156 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 45-49, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of under-five deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- Number of under-five deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) was 2.93 million 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 Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- The highest recorded value was 4.29 million in 1998.
- What is the lowest number of under-five deaths recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.93 million in 2024.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) rank for number of under-five deaths?
- Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 8th out of 47 groups with data for 2024.
- Is number of under-five deaths rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Number of children dying before reaching age five.