Top 10 African countries with the highest fertility rate in 2024

In 2024, there are six countries, all in Sub-Saharan Africa, where the average woman of childbearing age can expect to have around six or more children throughout their lifetime. In fact, of the 20 countries in the world with the highest fertility rates, Afghanistan is the only country not found in Sub-Saharan Africa.

With a fertility rate of almost seven children per woman, Niger is the country with the highest fertility rate in the world. Population growth in Niger is among the highest in the world. Lack of healthcare access, as well as food instability, political instability, and climate change, are all exacerbating conditions that keep Niger’s infant mortality rates high, which is generally the driver behind high fertility rates.

This situation is common across much of the continent, and, although there has been considerable progress in recent decades, development in Sub-Saharan Africa is not moving as quickly as it did in other less-developed regions.

While these countries continue to have high birth rates, their rates are all on a generally downward trajectory due to a phenomenon known as the demographic transition.

As child mortality rates drop, families no longer feel the need to “compensate” by having more children, leading to lower birth rates. Eventually, birth rates may even fall below the replacement level of about 2.1 children per woman, leading to a slow natural population decline in the long run. In highly developed countries, low birth rates are already a familiar story.