Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in North Korea
North Korea: Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty was 1.78 live births per woman in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
1.78 live births per woman
Change on year
down 0.9%
World rank
130th
of 236 countries
All-time high
4.99 live births per woman
in 1950
All-time low
1.78 live births per woman
in 2023
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in North Korea, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in live births per woman.
Analysis
North Korea recorded 1.78 live births per woman for fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.
The figure is down 0.9% on the previous year and down 5.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in North Korea peaked at 4.99 live births per woman in 1950 and was at its lowest, 1.78 live births per woman, in 2023.
North Korea ranks 130th of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.
Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in North Korea, year by year
| Year | live births per woman | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 4.99 live births per woman | — |
| 1951 | 2.6 live births per woman | -48.0% |
| 1952 | 2.61 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1953 | 3.08 live births per woman | +18.0% |
| 1954 | 3.5 live births per woman | +13.4% |
| 1955 | 3.67 live births per woman | +5.1% |
| 1956 | 3.51 live births per woman | -4.5% |
| 1957 | 4.28 live births per woman | +22.0% |
| 1958 | 4.27 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1959 | 3.56 live births per woman | -16.7% |
| 1960 | 3.57 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1961 | 3.26 live births per woman | -8.6% |
| 1962 | 3.41 live births per woman | +4.6% |
| 1963 | 3.63 live births per woman | +6.3% |
| 1964 | 3.55 live births per woman | -2.2% |
| 1965 | 3.56 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1966 | 3.71 live births per woman | +4.3% |
| 1967 | 4.05 live births per woman | +9.2% |
| 1968 | 3.87 live births per woman | -4.4% |
| 1969 | 3.86 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1970 | 3.85 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1971 | 3.74 live births per woman | -2.8% |
| 1972 | 3.89 live births per woman | +4.0% |
| 1973 | 3.35 live births per woman | -13.8% |
| 1974 | 3.14 live births per woman | -6.3% |
| 1975 | 3.05 live births per woman | -3.0% |
| 1976 | 2.84 live births per woman | -6.9% |
| 1977 | 2.77 live births per woman | -2.3% |
| 1978 | 2.79 live births per woman | +0.8% |
| 1979 | 2.85 live births per woman | +2.0% |
| 1980 | 2.84 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1981 | 2.92 live births per woman | +2.8% |
| 1982 | 2.85 live births per woman | -2.3% |
| 1983 | 2.78 live births per woman | -2.7% |
| 1984 | 2.71 live births per woman | -2.5% |
| 1985 | 2.65 live births per woman | -2.3% |
| 1986 | 2.59 live births per woman | -2.0% |
| 1987 | 2.53 live births per woman | -2.5% |
| 1988 | 2.47 live births per woman | -2.4% |
| 1989 | 2.41 live births per woman | -2.3% |
| 1990 | 2.39 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1991 | 2.35 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 1992 | 2.29 live births per woman | -2.7% |
| 1993 | 2.22 live births per woman | -3.0% |
| 1994 | 2.18 live births per woman | -1.6% |
| 1995 | 2.15 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 1996 | 2.09 live births per woman | -2.5% |
| 1997 | 2.03 live births per woman | -3.2% |
| 1998 | 1.99 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 1999 | 1.97 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 1.94 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 2001 | 1.94 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 2002 | 1.92 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 2003 | 1.91 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 2004 | 1.9 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 2005 | 1.87 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 2006 | 1.94 live births per woman | +3.4% |
| 2007 | 1.94 live births per woman | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 1.97 live births per woman | +1.4% |
| 2009 | 1.91 live births per woman | -3.3% |
| 2010 | 1.89 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 2011 | 1.88 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 2012 | 1.88 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 1.88 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 1.87 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 2015 | 1.86 live births per woman | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 1.86 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 1.85 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 2018 | 1.83 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 1.82 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 2020 | 1.82 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 2021 | 1.81 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 2022 | 1.8 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 2023 | 1.78 live births per woman | -0.9% |
North Korea compared with similar countries
- North Korea's 1.78 live births per woman is below the median for low income countries, which is 4.19 live births per woman, 43% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- North Korea's 1.78 live births per woman is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 2.13 live births per woman, 84% of the median. (37 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in North Korea 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | -48.0% | 4.99 live births per woman | 2.6 live births per woman |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 3.61 live births per woman | 2.6 live births per woman | 4.99 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1960s | 3.65 live births per woman | 3.26 live births per woman | 4.05 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1970s | 3.23 live births per woman | 2.77 live births per woman | 3.89 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.67 live births per woman | 2.41 live births per woman | 2.92 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.17 live births per woman | 1.97 live births per woman | 2.39 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.92 live births per woman | 1.87 live births per woman | 1.97 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.86 live births per woman | 1.82 live births per woman | 1.89 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.8 live births per woman | 1.78 live births per woman | 1.82 live births per woman | 4 |
Countries ranked near North Korea
- 127 Ecuador 1.82 live births per woman compare
- 128 Georgia 1.81 live births per woman compare
- 129 Montenegro 1.8 live births per woman compare
- 131 El Salvador 1.77 live births per woman compare
- 131 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1.77 live births per woman compare
- 133 Bulgaria 1.75 live births per woman compare
More poverty & inequality data for North Korea
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 3,610 kg per hectare (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate 2.01 % change on previous year (2024)
- Lifespan inequality: Gini coefficient in women 0.1119 (2023)
- Lifespan inequality: Gini coefficient by sex 0.1119 (2023)
- Lifespan inequality: Gini coefficient in men 0.1328 (2023)
- Share of gross national income from poverty reduction grants 0.0% (2023)
- Use of interpolation and extrapolation on original Gini coefficient data 1,673 (2017)
- Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty 9.3% (2017)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in North Korea?
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in North Korea was 1.78 live births per woman in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty recorded in North Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 4.99 live births per woman in 1950.
- What is the lowest fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty recorded in North Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.78 live births per woman in 2023.
- How does North Korea rank for fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty?
- North Korea ranks 130th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty rising or falling in North Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this North Korea data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total fertility rate: the average number of children a woman would have if she experienced the year's age-specific birth rates throughout her childbearing years.