Rwanda's intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) was 3.61 in 2020, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is up 28.08% from 2.82 in 2010 (2.51% a year on average, compounded).
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 3.61 | 2020 |
| Five years earlier | 2.52 | 2015 |
| Ten years earlier | 2.82 | 2010 |
| Highest | 3.85 | 2017 |
| Lowest | 1.47 | 2008 |
| Average since 2012 | 3.12 | 2012–2020 |
| First recorded | 3.43 | 2006 |
What the numbers say
In 2020, Rwanda's intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) rose 0.45 on 2019 (from 3.16 to 3.61).
Across the 9 yearly changes before that (2007 to 2019), the average change was −0.13 and a typical year strayed about 1.05 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations above 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 0.88 in 2019 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.57 in 2018. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2012 to 2020 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 6% of the movement over 9 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 2020, Rwanda had the 5th highest value of the 13 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.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Rwanda | 3.61 | 2020 |
| World | 5.2 | 2023 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 12.2 | 2023 |
| Low income | 10.4 | 2023 |
Closest to Rwanda in the 2020 ranking
- Tunisia — 2nd of 13: 4.69
- Cayman Islands — 3rd of 13: 4.37
- Tanzania — 4th of 13: 3.75
- Bhutan — 6th of 13: 2.47
- Lebanon — 7th of 13: 2.24
- Sierra Leone — 8th of 13: 2.22
What this measures
An intentional homicide is defined as an unlawful death inflicted upon a person with the intent to cause death or serious injury.
Limitations: Statistics reported to the United Nations in the context of its various surveys on crime levels and criminal justice trends are incidents of victimization that have been reported to the authorities in any given country. That means that this data is subject to the problems of accuracy of all official crime data. The survey results provide an overview of trends and interrelationships between various parts of the criminal justice system to promote informed decision-making in administration, nationally and internationally. The degree to which different societies apportion the level of culpability to acts resulting in death is also subject to variation.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a aggregate values are computed by unodc. for additional information, please see the unodc website: https://dataunodc.un.org/sites/dataunodc.un.org/files/metadata_intentional_homicide.pdf.
All 13 values
| Year | Intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 3.61 |
| 2019 | 3.16 |
| 2018 | 2.28 |
| 2017 | 3.85 |
| 2016 | 3.29 |
| 2015 | 2.52 |
| 2014 | 3.77 |
| 2013 | 3.24 |
| 2012 | 2.36 |
| 2011 | no data |
| 2010 |
Intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) in nearby economies
- Botswana — 11.37 (2021)
- Burkina Faso — 1.25 (2017)
- Cabo Verde — 6.99 (2020)
- Cameroon — 6.76 (2022)
- Eswatini — 12.51 (2021)
- Ghana — 1.83 (2022)
- Kenya — 4.87 (2022)
- Mauritius — 2.27 (2022)
- Namibia — 11.21 (2021)
- Seychelles — 7.97 (2022)
- Sierra Leone
More public sector data for Rwanda
- Military expenditure (current USD) — 191.19 million (2025)
- Military expenditure (current LCU) — 273.65 billion (2025)
- Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 1.29% (2025)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 37 million (2023)
- Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) — 4.7% (2025)
- Armed forces personnel, total — 35,000 (2020)
- Armed forces personnel (% of total labor force) — 0.7% (2020)
- Grants and other revenue (current LCU) — 1.5 trillion (2024)
- Grants and other revenue (% of revenue) — 33.97% (2024)
- Social contributions (current LCU)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Rwanda's intentional homicides (per 100,000 people)?
- 3.61 in 2020, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 2006?
- It is up 5.31% from 3.43 in 2006 (0.37% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 3.85 in 2017 and the lowest 1.47 in 2008.
- How does Rwanda rank?
- 5th highest of 13 economies with data for 2020.
- Is the latest change in intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) unusual for Rwanda?
- In 2020, Rwanda's intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) rose 0.45 on 2019 (from 3.16 to 3.61). Across the 9 yearly changes before that (2007 to 2019), the average change was −0.13 and a typical year strayed about 1.05 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations above 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 VC.IHR.PSRC.P5, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: UNODC Research - Data Portal – Intentional Homicide, UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) 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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