Birth rate in Ethiopia
Ethiopia: Birth rate was 31.9 births per 1,000 people in 2023. ▼ Falling
Birth rate in Ethiopia, 1950–2023
Source: Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in births per 1,000 people.
Analysis
Ethiopia recorded 31.9 births per 1,000 people for birth rate in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.
The figure is down 1.6% on the previous year and down 5.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, birth rate in Ethiopia peaked at 51.56 births per 1,000 people in 1985 and was at its lowest, 31.9 births per 1,000 people, in 2023.
Ethiopia 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.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 46.36 births per 1,000 people | 45.22 births per 1,000 people | 47.6 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1960s | 48.97 births per 1,000 people | 47.87 births per 1,000 people | 49.59 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1970s | 50.49 births per 1,000 people | 49.73 births per 1,000 people | 51.29 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1980s | 51.1 births per 1,000 people | 50.33 births per 1,000 people | 51.56 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 1990s | 48.99 births per 1,000 people | 46.39 births per 1,000 people | 50.79 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 2000s | 42.06 births per 1,000 people | 37.54 births per 1,000 people | 45.59 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 2010s | 34.07 births per 1,000 people | 33.22 births per 1,000 people | 36.57 births per 1,000 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 32.63 births per 1,000 people | 31.9 births per 1,000 people | 33.31 births per 1,000 people | 4 |
Countries ranked near Ethiopia
- 22 Togo 32.64 births per 1,000 people compare
- 23 Madagascar 32.09 births per 1,000 people compare
- 24 Cote d'Ivoire 31.99 births per 1,000 people compare
- 26 Burkina Faso 31.64 births per 1,000 people compare
- 27 Malawi 31.38 births per 1,000 people compare
- 28 Liberia 30.96 births per 1,000 people compare
More population data for Ethiopia
- Population growth rate, by level of development 0.5% (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 23.22 million people (2100)
- Population density 325.45 people per km² (2100)
- World population growth 0.5% (2100)
- Total fertility rate vs. wanted fertility rate 3.91 births per woman (2024)
- Refugees by country of asylum 1.01 million people (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. unmet need for contraception 3.91 births per woman (2024)
- Total fertility rate vs. contraceptive prevalence 3.91 births per woman (2024)
- Natural population growth rate 2.6% (2023)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 3.99 live births per woman (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is birth rate in Ethiopia?
- Birth rate in Ethiopia was 31.9 births per 1,000 people in 2023, according to Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest birth rate recorded in Ethiopia?
- The highest recorded value was 51.56 births per 1,000 people in 1985.
- What is the lowest birth rate recorded in Ethiopia?
- The lowest recorded value was 31.9 births per 1,000 people in 2023.
- How does Ethiopia rank for birth rate?
- Ethiopia ranks 25th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is birth rate rising or falling in Ethiopia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ethiopia data come from?
- The figures come from Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Birth rate. 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
The total number of births per 1,000 people in a given year.