Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in Lesotho
Lesotho: Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty was 2.69 live births per woman in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
2.69 live births per woman
Change on year
down 0.8%
World rank
72nd
of 236 countries
All-time high
5.87 live births per woman
in 1976
All-time low
2.69 live births per woman
in 2023
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in Lesotho, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in live births per woman.
Analysis
Lesotho recorded 2.69 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.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.8% on the previous year and down 17.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in Lesotho peaked at 5.87 live births per woman in 1976 and was at its lowest, 2.69 live births per woman, in 2023.
Lesotho ranks 72nd 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 Lesotho, year by year
| Year | live births per woman | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 5.7 live births per woman | — |
| 1951 | 5.72 live births per woman | +0.4% |
| 1952 | 5.73 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1953 | 5.75 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1954 | 5.79 live births per woman | +0.7% |
| 1955 | 5.79 live births per woman | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 5.79 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1957 | 5.79 live births per woman | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 5.79 live births per woman | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 5.79 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1960 | 5.78 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1961 | 5.79 live births per woman | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 5.79 live births per woman | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 5.78 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1964 | 5.76 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1965 | 5.77 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1966 | 5.76 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1967 | 5.75 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1968 | 5.72 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1969 | 5.7 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1970 | 5.7 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1971 | 5.7 live births per woman | -0.0% |
| 1972 | 5.69 live births per woman | -0.0% |
| 1973 | 5.69 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1974 | 5.75 live births per woman | +1.1% |
| 1975 | 5.83 live births per woman | +1.3% |
| 1976 | 5.87 live births per woman | +0.8% |
| 1977 | 5.85 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1978 | 5.82 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1979 | 5.79 live births per woman | -0.6% |
| 1980 | 5.75 live births per woman | -0.7% |
| 1981 | 5.69 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1982 | 5.63 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1983 | 5.56 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 1984 | 5.48 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 1985 | 5.4 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 1986 | 5.32 live births per woman | -1.6% |
| 1987 | 5.22 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 1988 | 5.1 live births per woman | -2.3% |
| 1989 | 4.96 live births per woman | -2.7% |
| 1990 | 4.81 live births per woman | -3.0% |
| 1991 | 4.68 live births per woman | -2.7% |
| 1992 | 4.54 live births per woman | -3.0% |
| 1993 | 4.37 live births per woman | -3.9% |
| 1994 | 4.21 live births per woman | -3.6% |
| 1995 | 4.12 live births per woman | -2.0% |
| 1996 | 4.06 live births per woman | -1.6% |
| 1997 | 3.98 live births per woman | -1.9% |
| 1998 | 3.81 live births per woman | -4.2% |
| 1999 | 3.67 live births per woman | -3.8% |
| 2000 | 3.6 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2001 | 3.63 live births per woman | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 3.68 live births per woman | +1.4% |
| 2003 | 3.62 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 2004 | 3.51 live births per woman | -3.1% |
| 2005 | 3.43 live births per woman | -2.3% |
| 2006 | 3.41 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 2007 | 3.44 live births per woman | +0.8% |
| 2008 | 3.39 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 2009 | 3.31 live births per woman | -2.4% |
| 2010 | 3.25 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2011 | 3.34 live births per woman | +2.9% |
| 2012 | 3.3 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 2013 | 3.28 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 2014 | 3.24 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 2015 | 3.22 live births per woman | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 3.18 live births per woman | -1.2% |
| 2017 | 3.1 live births per woman | -2.4% |
| 2018 | 3.02 live births per woman | -2.9% |
| 2019 | 2.92 live births per woman | -3.1% |
| 2020 | 2.85 live births per woman | -2.7% |
| 2021 | 2.77 live births per woman | -2.7% |
| 2022 | 2.72 live births per woman | -1.9% |
| 2023 | 2.69 live births per woman | -0.8% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 2.69 live births per woman is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 3.15 live births per woman, 86% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 2.69 live births per woman is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 4 live births per woman, 67% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 5.76 live births per woman | 5.7 live births per woman | 5.79 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1960s | 5.76 live births per woman | 5.7 live births per woman | 5.79 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1970s | 5.77 live births per woman | 5.69 live births per woman | 5.87 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.41 live births per woman | 4.96 live births per woman | 5.75 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.23 live births per woman | 3.67 live births per woman | 4.81 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.5 live births per woman | 3.31 live births per woman | 3.68 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.19 live births per woman | 2.92 live births per woman | 3.34 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.76 live births per woman | 2.69 live births per woman | 2.85 live births per woman | 4 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
- 69 Saint Martin (French part) 2.72 live births per woman compare
- 70 Syria 2.71 live births per woman compare
- 71 East Timor 2.71 live births per woman compare
- 73 Turkmenistan 2.69 live births per woman compare
- 74 Mongolia 2.69 live births per woman compare
- 75 Haiti 2.66 live births per woman compare
More poverty & inequality data for Lesotho
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 1 surveys (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per person (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 804.1 kg per hectare (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate 10.32 % change on previous year (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 30.43 (2022)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 30.4% (2022)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, annual growth rate -3.46 % change on previous year (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in Lesotho?
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in Lesotho was 2.69 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 Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 5.87 live births per woman in 1976.
- What is the lowest fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.69 live births per woman in 2023.
- How does Lesotho rank for fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty?
- Lesotho ranks 72nd out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho 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.