IDA & IBRD total: Low-birthweight babies (% of births)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2020, IDA & IBRD total's low-birthweight babies (% of births) rose 0.17 percentage points on 2019 (from 15.23% to 15.39%).

Across the 19 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2019), the average change was −0.14 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.17 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.8 standard deviations above that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.19 percentage points in 2018 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.39 percentage points in 2014. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2011 to 2020 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.07 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 57% of the movement over 10 observed years.

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

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

What this measures

Low-birthweight babies are newborns weighing less than 2,500 grams, with the measurement taken within the first hour of life, before significant postnatal weight loss has occurred.

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

All 21 values

Low-birthweight babies (% of births) in nearby economies

• Algeria — 7.2% (2020)
• Bahrain — 12.44% (2020)
• Iraq — 10.86% (2020)
• Israel — 8.98% (2020)
• Jordan — 18.94% (2020)
• Kuwait — 14.37% (2020)
• Lebanon — 12.6% (2020)
• Malta — 7.18% (2020)
• Morocco — 14.77% (2020)
• Oman — 13.24% (2020)
• Qatar — 9.96% (2020)

More health data for IDA & IBRD total

• Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 8.2% (2025)
• Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 8.52% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female — 882.54 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 25.39% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male — 934.45 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 26.57% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, total — 1.82 billion (2025)
• Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 25.98% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is IDA & IBRD total's low-birthweight babies (% of births)?

15.39% in 2020, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2000?

It is down 2.42 percentage points from 17.81% in 2000. The highest value was 17.85% in 2001 and the lowest 15.1% in 2017.

Is the latest change in low-birthweight babies (% of births) unusual for IDA & IBRD total?

In 2020, IDA & IBRD total's low-birthweight babies (% of births) rose 0.17 percentage points on 2019 (from 15.23% to 15.39%). Across the 19 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2019), the average change was −0.14 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.17 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.8 standard deviations above that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Where does this data come from?

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SH.STA.BRTW.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: UNICEF-WHO Low birthweight estimates, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), uri: data.unicef.org; World Health Organization (WHO), uri: data.unicef.org, note: UNICEF-WHO Low birthweight estimates 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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