Suriname: Low-birthweight babies (% of births)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2020, Suriname's low-birthweight babies (% of births) rose 0.09 percentage points on 2019 (from 16.37% to 16.46%).

Across the 19 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2019), the average change was +0.11 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.01 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.8 standard deviations below 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 0.13 percentage points in 2010. 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 upward, about 0.1 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 100% 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.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 16.81% for 2023. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2018 to 2020 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 0.08%, against 0.18% for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2020, Suriname had the 23rd highest value of the 157 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 Suriname in the 2020 ranking

• Botswana — 19th of 157: 16.83%
• Lao PDR — 20th of 157: 16.73%
• South Africa — 21st of 157: 16.64%
• Benin — 23rd of 157: 16.45%
• Central African Republic — 24th of 157: 16.35%
• Trinidad and Tobago — 25th of 157: 16.27%

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

• Antigua and Barbuda — 15.36% (2020)
• Argentina — 7.36% (2020)
• Bahamas, The — 15.4% (2020)
• Belize — 11.56% (2020)
• Bolivia — 7.93% (2020)
• Brazil — 8.7% (2020)
• Chile — 6.84% (2020)
• Colombia — 10.95% (2020)
• Costa Rica — 8.72% (2020)
• Cuba — 7.06% (2020)
• Dominican Republic

More health data for Suriname

• Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 8.18% (2025)
• Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 8.5% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female — 79,635 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 24.86% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male — 82,486 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 25.82% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, total — 162,121 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 25.34% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 8.2% (2025)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Suriname's low-birthweight babies (% of births)?

16.46% in 2020, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2000?

It is up 2.27 percentage points from 14.2% in 2000. The highest value was 16.46% in 2020 and the lowest 14.2% in 2000.

How does Suriname rank?

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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