Sri Lanka's maternal mortality ratio (national estimate, per 100,000 live births) was 33 in 2022, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 12.47% from 37.7 in 2012 (1.32% a year on average, compounded).
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 33 | 2022 |
| Five years earlier | 39 | 2017 |
| Ten years earlier | 37.7 | 2012 |
| Highest | 63 | 1997 |
| Lowest | 29.2 | 2019 |
| Average since 2013 | 34.24 | 2013–2022 |
| First recorded | 61 | 1995 |
What the numbers say
In 2022, Sri Lanka's maternal mortality ratio (national estimate, per 100,000 live births) fell 14.04 on 2021 (from 47.04 to 33).
Across the 26 yearly changes before that (1996 to 2021), the average change was −0.54 and a typical year strayed about 6.36 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 16.84 in 2021 and the biggest yearly fall was 14.04 in 2022. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2013 to 2022 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 6% 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 2022, Sri Lanka had the 9th highest value of the 14 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 Sri Lanka in the 2022 ranking
- Colombia — 6th of 14: 48.46
- Mexico — 7th of 14: 38.21
- Argentina — 8th of 14: 34.3
- Puerto Rico (US) — 10th of 14: 31.4
- Nicaragua — 11th of 14: 31.2
- United States — 12th of 14: 22.3
What this measures
Maternal mortality ratio is the number of women who die from pregnancy-related causes while pregnant or within 42 days of pregnancy termination per 100,000 live births.
Limitations: Maternal mortality ratios are generally of unknown reliability, as are many other cause-specific mortality indicators. The ratios cannot be assumed to provide an exact estimate of maternal mortality. Maternal mortality ratios collected directly from Demographic and Health Surveys are presented in the survey year, but reference time of these maternal mortality ratios is for the seven years preceding the survey.
All 28 values
| Year | Maternal mortality ratio (national estimate, per 100,000 live births) |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 33 |
| 2021 | 47.04 |
| 2020 | 30.2 |
| 2019 | 29.2 |
| 2018 | 32 |
| 2017 | 39 |
| 2016 | 33.8 |
| 2015 | 33.7 |
| 2014 | 32 |
| 2013 | 32.5 |
| 2012 |
Maternal mortality ratio (national estimate, per 100,000 live births) in nearby economies
- India — 130 (2015)
More health data for Sri Lanka
- Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 6.56% (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 7.3% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female — 2.31 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 20.6% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male — 2.41 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 22.87% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total — 4.72 million (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 21.7% (2025)
- Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 6.81% (2025)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Sri Lanka's maternal mortality ratio (national estimate, per 100,000 live births)?
- 33 in 2022, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1995?
- It is down 45.9% from 61 in 1995 (2.25% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 63 in 1997 and the lowest 29.2 in 2019.
- How does Sri Lanka rank?
- 9th highest of 14 economies with data for 2022.
- Is the latest change in maternal mortality ratio (national estimate, per 100,000 live births) unusual for Sri Lanka?
- In 2022, Sri Lanka's maternal mortality ratio (national estimate, per 100,000 live births) fell 14.04 on 2021 (from 47.04 to 33). Across the 26 yearly changes before that (1996 to 2021), the average change was −0.54 and a typical year strayed about 6.36 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SH.STA.MMRT.NE, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-Agency Group (MMEIG), World Health Organization (WHO), note: The country data compiled, adjusted and used in the estimation model by the Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-Agency Group (MMEIG). 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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