Top 25 Countries with the Highest Birth Rate (2023)

Crude birth rate is a key demographic indicator that measures the number of births per 1,000 people in a given year. A high birth rate often reflects socio-economic conditions, healthcare infrastructure, and cultural practices. In 2023, several African nations top the list for having the highest crude birth rates globally.

Observations

• African dominance: Most countries on the list are in Sub-Saharan Africa, reflecting the region’s high fertility rates and younger population.
• Health and Development: High birth rates often correspond to limited access to family planning, lower education levels, and higher child mortality.
• Potential Growth: These countries are poised for rapid population growth in the coming decades, impacting economic development, education, and healthcare.

Understanding these land sizes is crucial for studies in resource distribution, biodiversity, and geopolitics.

The crude birth rate measures the number of live births per 1,000 people in a population, based on mid-year estimates. By subtracting the crude death rate from the crude birth rate, we can determine the natural increase rate, which reflects population growth excluding migration effects.

However, the crude birth rate is less suitable for comparing populations or regions with varying age structures. The rate of natural increase, derived from the difference between the crude birth and death rates, represents the pace of population growth in the absence of migration.

Ranking: Birth Rate (Crude) by Country (2023)

Rank	Country Name	Birth rate, crude (per 1,000 people) in 2023
1	Central African Republic	46.36
2	Somalia	42.96
3	Chad	42.40
4	Niger	41.89
5	Congo, Dem. Rep.	41.31
6	Mali	40.03
7	Angola	37.59
8	Mozambique	37.49
9	Afghanistan	35.44
10	Tanzania	35.22
11	Yemen, Rep.	35.21
12	Uganda	35.20
13	Mauritania	34.42
14	Benin	33.88
15	Guinea	33.85
16	Cameroon	33.74
17	Burundi	33.67
18	Sudan	33.61
19	Zambia	33.08
20	Nigeria	32.95
21	Madagascar	32.10
22	Cote d’Ivoire	31.99
23	Ethiopia	31.90
24	Burkina Faso	31.64
25	Malawi	31.38
26	Togo	31.14
27	Liberia	30.96
28	Congo, Rep.	30.63
29	Sierra Leone	30.60
30	Gambia, The	30.43
31	Zimbabwe	30.41
32	Guinea-Bissau	30.04
33	Equatorial Guinea	29.60
34	Senegal	29.42
35	Comoros	28.65
36	South Sudan	28.59
37	Eritrea	28.54
38	Rwanda	28.35
39	Sao Tome and Principe	28.19
40	Vanuatu	28.05
41	Pakistan	27.81
42	Gabon	27.67
43	Kenya	27.11
44	West Bank and Gaza	27.06
45	Solomon Islands	26.94
46	Uzbekistan	26.47
47	Ghana	26.31
48	Tajikistan	26.12
49	Namibia	25.89
50	Kiribati	25.81
51	Iraq	25.73
52	Nauru	25.51
53	Samoa	25.40
54	Botswana	24.71
55	Papua New Guinea	24.58
56	Lesotho	24.11
57	Eswatini	24.07
58	Tonga	23.12
59	Tuvalu	23.08
60	Micronesia, Fed. Sts.	22.30
61	Haiti	22.20
62	Syrian Arab Republic	22.11
63	Timor-Leste	22.08
64	Honduras	21.96
65	Turkmenistan	21.74
66	Lao PDR	21.27
67	Bolivia	21.25
68	Marshall Islands	21.14
69	Egypt, Arab Rep.	21.00
70	Guatemala	20.81
71	Djibouti	20.77
72	Cambodia	20.75
73	Jordan	20.61
74	Kyrgyz Republic	20.60
75	Bangladesh	20.35
76	Guyana	20.29
77	Kazakhstan	20.14
78	Paraguay	19.99
79	Algeria	19.63
80	Nicaragua	19.38
81	Nepal	19.34
82	Mongolia	19.00
83	South Africa	18.78
84	Israel	18.60
85	Belize	18.03
86	Fiji	18.00
87	Dominican Republic	17.93
88	Guam	17.66
89	Suriname	17.30
90	St. Martin (French part)	17.07
91	Libya	17.02
92	Oman	16.85
93	Morocco	16.70
94	Myanmar	16.70
95	Saudi Arabia	16.42
96	India	16.15
97	Lebanon	16.14
98	Panama	16.03
99	Philippines	16.02
100	Peru	15.94
101	Indonesia	15.94
102	El Salvador	15.76
103	Mexico	15.71
104	American Samoa	15.39
105	Venezuela, RB	15.09
106	Ecuador	15.03
107	New Caledonia	14.26
108	Viet Nam	13.83
109	Tunisia	13.75
110	Brunei Darussalam	13.59
111	Colombia	13.48
112	Seychelles	13.00
113	Iran, Islamic Rep.	12.95
114	Korea, Dem. People’s Rep.	12.95
115	Northern Mariana Islands	12.92
116	Bhutan	12.66
117	Greenland	12.60
118	Bahrain	12.46
119	Malaysia	12.41
120	Cabo Verde	12.33
121	Brazil	12.32
122	Armenia	12.30
123	St. Vincent and the Grenadines	12.16
124	Gibraltar	12.07
125	Kosovo	12.07
126	Antigua and Barbuda	11.85
127	Cayman Islands	11.84
128	St. Kitts and Nevis	11.75
129	Grenada	11.71
130	Jamaica	11.62
131	Georgia	11.49
132	Virgin Islands (U.S.)	11.40
133	St. Lucia	11.26
134	Montenegro	11.20
135	Sri Lanka	11.20
136	Turkiye	11.20
137	Barbados	11.17
138	Azerbaijan	11.10
139	Dominica	11.09
140	Argentina	11.06
141	Maldives	11.02
142	Iceland	11.00
143	French Polynesia	10.91
144	Palau	10.90
145	New Zealand	10.86
146	Bahamas, The	10.85
147	Australia	10.80
148	Cyprus	10.80
149	Moldova	10.76
150	Turks and Caicos Islands	10.74
151	Trinidad and Tobago	10.71
152	United States	10.70
153	Faroe Islands	10.60
154	Kuwait	10.30
155	Ireland	10.30
156	Albania	10.24
157	Mauritius	10.20
158	Costa Rica	10.18
159	United Kingdom	10.02
160	Qatar	9.91
161	France	9.90
162	Uruguay	9.87
163	United Arab Emirates	9.77
164	Denmark	9.70
165	Luxembourg	9.50
166	Sweden	9.50
167	Monaco	9.44
168	Belgium	9.40
169	Norway	9.40
170	Netherlands	9.20
171	North Macedonia	9.20
172	Serbia	9.20
173	Sint Maarten (Dutch part)	9.13
174	Hungary	9.10
175	Liechtenstein	9.10
176	Slovak Republic	9.00
177	Switzerland	9.00
178	Chile	8.96
179	Bulgaria	8.90
180	Canada	8.80
181	Cuba	8.71
182	Russian Federation	8.60
183	Austria	8.50
184	Czechia	8.40
185	Isle of Man	8.34
186	British Virgin Islands	8.33
187	Croatia	8.30
188	Germany	8.30
189	Thailand	8.25
190	Channel Islands	8.20
191	Malta	8.10
192	Portugal	8.10
193	Bermuda	8.05
194	Estonia	8.00
195	Romania	8.00
196	Slovenia	8.00
197	Aruba	7.97
198	Finland	7.80
199	Bosnia and Herzegovina	7.71
200	Latvia	7.70
201	Curacao	7.50
202	Poland	7.40
203	Singapore	7.40
204	Lithuania	7.20
205	Belarus	7.14
206	Andorra	6.86
207	Greece	6.80
208	Spain	6.70
209	Italy	6.40
210	China	6.39
211	Japan	6.00
212	Puerto Rico (US)	5.80
213	Ukraine	5.63
214	San Marino	5.60
215	Macao SAR, China	5.50
216	Korea, Rep.	4.50
217	Hong Kong SAR, China	4.40

FAQ

1. What is the crude birth rate?
The crude birth rate is the number of live births occurring among the population of a given geographical area during a year, per 1,000 people.

2. Why are birth rates higher in some countries?
Higher birth rates are typically linked to cultural norms favoring larger families, limited access to contraception, lower levels of female education, and healthcare infrastructure.

3. How does the birth rate impact a country’s economy?
A high birth rate can lead to a larger working-age population in the future, but it also places immediate pressure on resources like education, healthcare, and employment opportunities.

Source:

World Bank Group. Health Nutrition and Population Statistics