Fertility rate vs. Share of people who are religious in Zambia
Zambia: Fertility rate vs. Share of people who are religious was 4.1 live births per woman in 2023. ▼ Falling
Fertility rate vs. Share of people who are religious in Zambia, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in live births per woman.
Analysis
In 2023, fertility rate vs. share of people who are religious in Zambia stood at 4.1 live births per woman. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.8% on the previous year and down 18.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate vs. share of people who are religious in Zambia peaked at 7.42 live births per woman in 1975 and was at its lowest, 4.1 live births per woman, in 2023.
Zambia ranks 25th of 236 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.
Fertility rate vs. Share of people who are religious in Zambia, year by year
| Year | live births per woman | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 6.78 live births per woman | — |
| 1951 | 6.77 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1952 | 6.77 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1953 | 6.79 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1954 | 6.79 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1955 | 6.8 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1956 | 6.81 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1957 | 6.83 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1958 | 6.86 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1959 | 6.9 live births per woman | +0.6% |
| 1960 | 6.95 live births per woman | +0.6% |
| 1961 | 6.98 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1962 | 7.01 live births per woman | +0.4% |
| 1963 | 7.06 live births per woman | +0.7% |
| 1964 | 7.08 live births per woman | +0.4% |
| 1965 | 7.12 live births per woman | +0.4% |
| 1966 | 7.14 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1967 | 7.15 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1968 | 7.18 live births per woman | +0.4% |
| 1969 | 7.18 live births per woman | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 7.22 live births per woman | +0.6% |
| 1971 | 7.26 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1972 | 7.3 live births per woman | +0.6% |
| 1973 | 7.34 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1974 | 7.36 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1975 | 7.42 live births per woman | +0.8% |
| 1976 | 7.39 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1977 | 7.35 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1978 | 7.29 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 1979 | 7.22 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1980 | 7.14 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1981 | 7.07 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1982 | 7.04 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1983 | 7.01 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1984 | 6.97 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1985 | 6.93 live births per woman | -0.7% |
| 1986 | 6.87 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1987 | 6.8 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1988 | 6.7 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 1989 | 6.63 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1990 | 6.57 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1991 | 6.46 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 1992 | 6.35 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 1993 | 6.3 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 1994 | 6.26 live births per woman | -0.6% |
| 1995 | 6.23 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1996 | 6.18 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 1997 | 6.12 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1998 | 6.07 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1999 | 6 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 2000 | 5.92 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 2001 | 5.85 live births per woman | -1.2% |
| 2002 | 5.77 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 2003 | 5.71 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 2004 | 5.7 live births per woman | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 5.7 live births per woman | -0.0% |
| 2006 | 5.68 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 2007 | 5.61 live births per woman | -1.2% |
| 2008 | 5.53 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 2009 | 5.45 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 2010 | 5.36 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 2011 | 5.26 live births per woman | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 5.14 live births per woman | -2.3% |
| 2013 | 5.01 live births per woman | -2.4% |
| 2014 | 4.89 live births per woman | -2.5% |
| 2015 | 4.78 live births per woman | -2.4% |
| 2016 | 4.67 live births per woman | -2.2% |
| 2017 | 4.57 live births per woman | -2.2% |
| 2018 | 4.49 live births per woman | -1.6% |
| 2019 | 4.42 live births per woman | -1.6% |
| 2020 | 4.32 live births per woman | -2.2% |
| 2021 | 4.25 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2022 | 4.17 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 2023 | 4.1 live births per woman | -1.8% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 4.1 live births per woman is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 3.15 live births per woman, 1.3× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 4.1 live births per woman is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 4 live births per woman, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 6.81 live births per woman | 6.77 live births per woman | 6.9 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1960s | 7.09 live births per woman | 6.95 live births per woman | 7.18 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1970s | 7.32 live births per woman | 7.22 live births per woman | 7.42 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.92 live births per woman | 6.63 live births per woman | 7.14 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 6.25 live births per woman | 6 live births per woman | 6.57 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.69 live births per woman | 5.45 live births per woman | 5.92 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.86 live births per woman | 4.42 live births per woman | 5.36 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.21 live births per woman | 4.1 live births per woman | 4.32 live births per woman | 4 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
More population data for Zambia
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate 0.5112 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate 0.5254 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate 0.2495 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate 0.5254 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate, by level of development 0.5% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 4.60 million people (2100)
- Population density 86.73 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth 0.5% (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.2967 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 2.52 Percent per annum (2030)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate vs. share of people who are religious in Zambia?
- Fertility rate vs. share of people who are religious in Zambia was 4.1 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 of people who are religious recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 7.42 live births per woman in 1975.
- What is the lowest fertility rate vs. share of people who are religious recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.1 live births per woman in 2023.
- How does Zambia rank for fertility rate vs. share of people who are religious?
- Zambia ranks 25th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fertility rate vs. share of people who are religious rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Zambia 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 of people who are religious. 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.