Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in South Africa
South Africa: Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty was 2.22 live births per woman in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
2.22 live births per woman
Change on year
down 0.5%
World rank
99th
of 236 countries
All-time high
6.14 live births per woman
in 1958
All-time low
2.22 live births per woman
in 2023
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in South Africa, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in live births per woman.
Analysis
The most recent figure for fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in South Africa is 2.22 live births per woman, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.5% on the previous year and down 8.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in South Africa peaked at 6.14 live births per woman in 1958 and was at its lowest, 2.22 live births per woman, in 2023.
That places South Africa 99th out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it 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 South Africa, year by year
| Year | live births per woman | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 6.03 live births per woman | — |
| 1951 | 6.06 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1952 | 6.08 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1953 | 6.09 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1954 | 6.11 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1955 | 6.13 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1956 | 6.13 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1957 | 6.14 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1958 | 6.14 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1959 | 6.13 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1960 | 6.11 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1961 | 6.08 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1962 | 6.05 live births per woman | -0.6% |
| 1963 | 6.01 live births per woman | -0.6% |
| 1964 | 5.96 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1965 | 5.89 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1966 | 5.91 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1967 | 5.85 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1968 | 5.78 live births per woman | -1.2% |
| 1969 | 5.72 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1970 | 5.63 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 1971 | 5.57 live births per woman | -1.2% |
| 1972 | 5.49 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 1973 | 5.41 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 1974 | 5.3 live births per woman | -2.1% |
| 1975 | 5.19 live births per woman | -2.0% |
| 1976 | 5.07 live births per woman | -2.3% |
| 1977 | 4.94 live births per woman | -2.5% |
| 1978 | 4.85 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 1979 | 4.82 live births per woman | -0.7% |
| 1980 | 4.78 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 1981 | 4.71 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 1982 | 4.7 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1983 | 4.63 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 1984 | 4.57 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 1985 | 4.5 live births per woman | -1.6% |
| 1986 | 4.41 live births per woman | -1.9% |
| 1987 | 4.35 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 1988 | 4.18 live births per woman | -4.0% |
| 1989 | 3.98 live births per woman | -4.7% |
| 1990 | 3.72 live births per woman | -6.5% |
| 1991 | 3.62 live births per woman | -2.8% |
| 1992 | 3.48 live births per woman | -3.8% |
| 1993 | 3.37 live births per woman | -3.1% |
| 1994 | 3.26 live births per woman | -3.4% |
| 1995 | 3.17 live births per woman | -2.6% |
| 1996 | 2.99 live births per woman | -5.7% |
| 1997 | 2.73 live births per woman | -8.6% |
| 1998 | 2.63 live births per woman | -3.8% |
| 1999 | 2.56 live births per woman | -2.7% |
| 2000 | 2.41 live births per woman | -5.7% |
| 2001 | 2.37 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 2002 | 2.32 live births per woman | -2.1% |
| 2003 | 2.36 live births per woman | +1.5% |
| 2004 | 2.44 live births per woman | +3.3% |
| 2005 | 2.51 live births per woman | +3.1% |
| 2006 | 2.55 live births per woman | +1.4% |
| 2007 | 2.54 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 2.68 live births per woman | +5.3% |
| 2009 | 2.5 live births per woman | -6.6% |
| 2010 | 2.44 live births per woman | -2.2% |
| 2011 | 2.44 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 2012 | 2.45 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 2013 | 2.43 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 2014 | 2.42 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 2015 | 2.36 live births per woman | -2.7% |
| 2016 | 2.26 live births per woman | -4.2% |
| 2017 | 2.28 live births per woman | +1.0% |
| 2018 | 2.27 live births per woman | -0.6% |
| 2019 | 2.26 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 2.26 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 2.25 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 2022 | 2.23 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 2023 | 2.22 live births per woman | -0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 6.1 live births per woman | 6.03 live births per woman | 6.14 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1960s | 5.94 live births per woman | 5.72 live births per woman | 6.11 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1970s | 5.23 live births per woman | 4.82 live births per woman | 5.63 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.48 live births per woman | 3.98 live births per woman | 4.78 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.15 live births per woman | 2.56 live births per woman | 3.72 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.47 live births per woman | 2.32 live births per woman | 2.68 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.36 live births per woman | 2.26 live births per woman | 2.45 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.24 live births per woman | 2.22 live births per woman | 2.26 live births per woman | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More poverty & inequality data for South Africa
- 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 4,562 kg per hectare (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate -20.01 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 28.13 (2022)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 28.1% (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 0.8444 % change on previous year (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in South Africa?
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty in South Africa was 2.22 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 South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 6.14 live births per woman in 1958.
- What is the lowest fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.22 live births per woman in 2023.
- How does South Africa rank for fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty?
- South Africa ranks 99th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa 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.