São Tomé and Principe: Number of neonatal deaths

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, São Tomé and Principe's number of neonatal deaths fell 2.3% on 2023 (from 43 to 42).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −3.7% and a typical year strayed about 3.4% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 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 2.4% in 1988 and the biggest yearly fall was 11% in 2016. 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 the straight-line trend is downward, about 3.21 a year. A straight line explains 90% 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

In 2024, São Tomé and Principe had the 163rd 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 São Tomé and Principe in the 2024 ranking

• Singapore — 160th of 196: 53
• Cabo Verde — 161st of 196: 52
• Belarus — 162nd of 196: 47
• Lithuania — 164th of 196: 41
• Bahamas, The — 165th of 196: 39
• Cyprus — 166th of 196: 39

What this measures

Number of neonates dying before reaching 28 days of age.

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 Extrapolations based on outdated surveys may not be reliable for monitoring changes in health status or for comparative analytical work.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 39 values

Number of neonatal deaths in nearby economies

• Angola — 25,491 (2024)
• Benin — 13,130 (2024)
• Botswana — 1,083 (2024)
• Burkina Faso — 17,516 (2024)
• Burundi — 8,890 (2024)
• Cabo Verde — 52 (2024)
• Cameroon — 24,029 (2024)
• Central African Republic — 7,362 (2024)
• Chad — 26,626 (2024)
• Comoros — 542 (2024)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 105,425 (2024)
• Congo, Rep.

More health data for São Tomé and Principe

• Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 12.94% (2025)
• Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 13.44% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female — 44,650 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 36.94% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male — 45,338 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 37.98% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, total — 89,988 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 37.46% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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Questions people ask

What is São Tomé and Principe's number of neonatal deaths?

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

How has it changed since 1986?

It is down 66.4% from 125 in 1986 (2.83% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 136 in 1991 and the lowest 42 in 2024.

How does São Tomé and Principe rank?

163rd highest of 196 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in number of neonatal deaths unusual for São Tomé and Principe?

In 2024, São Tomé and Principe's number of neonatal deaths fell 2.3% on 2023 (from 43 to 42). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −3.7% and a typical year strayed about 3.4% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 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 SH.DTH.NMRT, 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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