Natural population growth rate in Lesotho
Lesotho: Natural population growth rate was 1.3% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
1.3%
Change on year
down 0.1%
World rank
82nd
of 236 countries
All-time high
2.8%
in 1981
All-time low
0.8%
in 2006
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Natural population growth rate in Lesotho, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for natural population growth rate in Lesotho is 1.3%, measured in 2023.
The figure is down 0.1% on the previous year and down 7.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, natural population growth rate in Lesotho peaked at 2.8% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 0.8%, in 2006.
Lesotho ranks 82nd 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.
Natural population growth rate in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 1.9% | — |
| 1951 | 2.1% | +8.2% |
| 1952 | 2.2% | +5.5% |
| 1953 | 2.3% | +4.7% |
| 1954 | 2.4% | +5.1% |
| 1955 | 2.5% | +3.3% |
| 1956 | 2.6% | +3.3% |
| 1957 | 2.6% | +2.4% |
| 1958 | 2.7% | +1.4% |
| 1959 | 2.7% | +0.7% |
| 1960 | 2.7% | +0.4% |
| 1961 | 2.7% | -0.0% |
| 1962 | 2.7% | -0.3% |
| 1963 | 2.7% | -0.8% |
| 1964 | 2.7% | -0.5% |
| 1965 | 2.7% | -0.1% |
| 1966 | 2.6% | -0.7% |
| 1967 | 2.6% | -1.1% |
| 1968 | 2.6% | -1.3% |
| 1969 | 2.6% | -1.0% |
| 1970 | 2.5% | -0.5% |
| 1971 | 2.5% | -0.1% |
| 1972 | 2.5% | +0.2% |
| 1973 | 2.5% | +0.1% |
| 1974 | 2.6% | +1.9% |
| 1975 | 2.7% | +2.5% |
| 1976 | 2.7% | +2.3% |
| 1977 | 2.8% | +1.5% |
| 1978 | 2.8% | +1.1% |
| 1979 | 2.8% | +0.7% |
| 1980 | 2.8% | +0.1% |
| 1981 | 2.8% | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 2.8% | -0.2% |
| 1983 | 2.8% | -0.6% |
| 1984 | 2.8% | -0.8% |
| 1985 | 2.7% | -1.0% |
| 1986 | 2.7% | -1.1% |
| 1987 | 2.8% | +3.2% |
| 1988 | 2.7% | -3.2% |
| 1989 | 2.6% | -3.9% |
| 1990 | 2.5% | -4.4% |
| 1991 | 2.4% | -4.0% |
| 1992 | 2.3% | -4.9% |
| 1993 | 2.1% | -6.3% |
| 1994 | 2.0% | -5.9% |
| 1995 | 1.9% | -4.4% |
| 1996 | 1.8% | -4.1% |
| 1997 | 1.7% | -5.1% |
| 1998 | 1.5% | -11.3% |
| 1999 | 1.4% | -11.6% |
| 2000 | 1.2% | -9.5% |
| 2001 | 1.2% | -6.3% |
| 2002 | 1.1% | -3.6% |
| 2003 | 1.0% | -9.2% |
| 2004 | 0.9% | -13.6% |
| 2005 | 0.8% | -7.5% |
| 2006 | 0.8% | -3.4% |
| 2007 | 0.9% | +16.1% |
| 2008 | 1.0% | +8.2% |
| 2009 | 1.0% | +4.3% |
| 2010 | 1.1% | +6.8% |
| 2011 | 1.3% | +16.2% |
| 2012 | 1.4% | +6.5% |
| 2013 | 1.4% | +6.8% |
| 2014 | 1.5% | +2.6% |
| 2015 | 1.5% | +2.6% |
| 2016 | 1.6% | +2.8% |
| 2017 | 1.6% | -0.6% |
| 2018 | 1.5% | -2.7% |
| 2019 | 1.5% | -3.7% |
| 2020 | 1.4% | -5.9% |
| 2021 | 1.2% | -10.5% |
| 2022 | 1.3% | +9.6% |
| 2023 | 1.3% | -0.1% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 1.3% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1.9%, 70% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 1.3% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 2.4%, 56% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 2.4% | 1.9% | 2.7% | 10 |
| 1960s | 2.7% | 2.6% | 2.7% | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.7% | 2.5% | 2.8% | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.8% | 2.6% | 2.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.0% | 1.4% | 2.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.0% | 0.8% | 1.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.4% | 1.1% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.3% | 1.2% | 1.4% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More population data for Lesotho
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.1905 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -1.14 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.1905 % change on previous year (2100)
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -0.3315 % change on previous year (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.6353 % change on previous year (2100)
- World population growth -0.2% (2100)
- Population density 107.36 people per km² (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 190,191 people (2100)
- Population growth rate, by level of development -0.2% (2100)
- Number of people living in urban and rural areas, annual growth rate 3.4 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is natural population growth rate in Lesotho?
- Natural population growth rate in Lesotho was 1.3% in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest natural population growth rate recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 2.8% in 1981.
- What is the lowest natural population growth rate recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.8% in 2006.
- How does Lesotho rank for natural population growth rate?
- Lesotho ranks 82nd out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is natural population growth rate rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.1%. 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 Natural population growth 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
Births minus deaths, as a share of the population. This is the part of population change that comes only from births and deaths, ignoring migration.