Fertility rate: births per woman in Botswana
Botswana: Fertility rate: births per woman was 2.73 live births per woman in 2023. ▼ Falling
Fertility rate: births per woman in Botswana, 1950–2023
Source: Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in live births per woman.
Analysis
The most recent figure for fertility rate: births per woman in Botswana is 2.73 live births per woman, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.
That represents a change of down 1.9% on the previous year and down 10.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate: births per woman in Botswana peaked at 6.62 live births per woman in 1958 and was at its lowest, 2.73 live births per woman, in 2023.
Botswana ranks 68th 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.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 6.53 live births per woman | 6.43 live births per woman | 6.62 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1960s | 6.58 live births per woman | 6.54 live births per woman | 6.61 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1970s | 6.55 live births per woman | 6.39 live births per woman | 6.61 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.53 live births per woman | 4.67 live births per woman | 6.29 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.88 live births per woman | 3.31 live births per woman | 4.51 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.15 live births per woman | 3.06 live births per woman | 3.29 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.02 live births per woman | 2.91 live births per woman | 3.13 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.8 live births per woman | 2.73 live births per woman | 2.86 live births per woman | 4 |
Countries ranked near Botswana
- 65 Eswatini 2.75 live births per woman compare
- 66 Egypt 2.75 live births per woman compare
- 67 Micronesia (country) 2.75 live births per woman compare
- 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
More reference data data for Botswana
- Number of child deaths per woman 0.0809 under-five deaths per woman (2024)
- Fertility rate: births per woman 2.73 live births per woman (2023)
- Fertility rate vs. Human Development Index 2.73 live births per woman (2023)
- Human Development Index 0.731 (2023)
- Rule of Law - Governance estimate 0.3121 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Rule of Law - Governance score 62.34 0-100 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance estimate 0.2953 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Voice and Accountability - Governance score 62.02 0-100 (2024)
- Political Stability - Governance estimate 1.03 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 (2024)
- Political Stability - Governance score 83.53 0-100 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate: births per woman in Botswana?
- Fertility rate: births per woman in Botswana was 2.73 live births per woman in 2023, according to Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest fertility rate: births per woman recorded in Botswana?
- The highest recorded value was 6.62 live births per woman in 1958.
- What is the lowest fertility rate: births per woman recorded in Botswana?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.73 live births per woman in 2023.
- How does Botswana rank for fertility rate: births per woman?
- Botswana ranks 68th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fertility rate: births per woman rising or falling in Botswana?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Botswana data come from?
- The figures come from Human Fertility Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Fertility rate: births per woman. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
The average number of live births a hypothetical cohort of women would have at the end of their reproductive period if they were subject during their whole lives to the fertility rates of a given period and if they were not subject to mortality.