Central African Republic: Number of under-five deaths

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Central African Republic's number of under-five deaths rose 2.3% on 2023 (from 20,102 to 20,555).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +16.2% and a typical year strayed about 76% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 330% in 2009 and the biggest yearly fall was 80.9% in 2023. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 5% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2024, Central African Republic had the 43rd highest value of the 196 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Central African Republic in the 2024 ranking

• United States — 40th of 196: 23,685
• Sierra Leone — 41st of 196: 23,171
• Burundi — 42nd of 196: 21,573
• Algeria — 44th of 196: 19,422
• Senegal — 45th of 196: 19,308
• Togo — 46th of 196: 16,109

What this measures

Number of children dying before reaching age five.

Limitations: Complete vital registration systems are fairly uncommon in developing countries. Thus estimates must be obtained from sample surveys or derived by applying indirect estimation techniques to registration, census, or survey data. Survey data are subject to recall error, and surveys estimating infant/child deaths require large samples because households in which a birth has occurred during a given year cannot ordinarily be preselected for sampling. Indirect estimates rely on model life tables that may be inappropriate for the population concerned. Extrapolations based on outdated surveys may not be reliable for monitoring changes in health status or for comparative analytical work.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a sum.

All 61 values

Number of under-five deaths in nearby economies

• Angola — 67,003 (2024)
• Benin — 35,304 (2024)
• Botswana — 2,032 (2024)
• Burkina Faso — 54,009 (2024)
• Burundi — 21,573 (2024)
• Cabo Verde — 72 (2024)
• Cameroon — 61,508 (2024)
• Chad — 78,958 (2024)
• Comoros — 945 (2024)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 385,039 (2024)
• Congo, Rep. — 7,367 (2024)
• Côte d'Ivoire

More health data for Central African Republic

• Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 17.99% (2025)
• Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 19.74% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female — 1.33 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 46.47% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male — 1.35 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 51.07% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, total — 2.68 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 48.68% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Central African Republic's number of under-five deaths?

20,555 in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1964?

It is up 3.27% from 19,905 in 1964 (0.05% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 107,412 in 2009 and the lowest 19,236 in 1976.

How does Central African Republic rank?

43rd highest of 196 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in number of under-five deaths unusual for Central African Republic?

In 2024, Central African Republic's number of under-five deaths rose 2.3% on 2023 (from 20,102 to 20,555). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +16.2% and a typical year strayed about 76% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SH.DTH.MORT, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), uri: www.childmortality.org; World Health Organization (WHO), uri: www.childmortality.org, note: UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation; World Bank (WB), uri: www.childmortality.org, note: UN Inter-agenc… Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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