Sub-Saharan Africa

A life that begins in Madagascar

One in every 129 babies in the world is born here: about 1,038,338 a year, 2 a minute.

Population: 32,740,678
Births a year: 1,038,338
Life expectancy: 63.9
Children who die before 5 (per 1,000): 62.4

Health and survival

Life expectancy, women (years)
65.6
World: 75.9
Life expectancy, men (years)
62.1
World: 71
Babies who die before 1 (per 1,000)
43
World: 27.8
Children who die before 5 (per 1,000)
62.4
World: 37.6
Mothers who die in childbirth (per 100,000 births)
445
World: 189
Adults living with HIV (%)
0.5
World: 0.7
Adults who smoke (%)
26
World: 20
Alcohol per adult (litres a year)
0.99
World: 4.6
Road deaths (per 100,000)
29.2
World: 17
Homicides (per 100,000)
≈ 5.2
World: 4.7

Family and school

Children per woman
3.91
World: 2.85
Women married before 18 (%)
39
World: 18
Children in primary school (%)
96
World: 89
Secondary school enrolment (%)
34
World: 81
Higher education enrolment (%)
6
World: 48
Children aged 7–14 who work (%)
26
World: 11.9

Money and work

Income per person (PPP)
$1,668
World: $21,797
Income inequality (Gini, 0–100)
37
World: 34
Living on under $3 a day (%)
69.2
World: 9.9
Unemployment (%)
3
World: 5.1
Jobs in farming (%)
69
World: 27
Women in the workforce (%)
83
World: 48
Health costs paid out of pocket (%)
27
World: 37

Home and connection

Living in cities (%)
33
World: 58
Access to electricity (%)
43
World: 92
Safe drinking water (%)
55
World: 91
Internet users (%)
19
World: 72

Peace and wellbeing

Life satisfaction (0–10)
4.17
World: 5.4
Deaths in armed conflict (per 100,000 a year)
0
World: 2.43
Refugees abroad (% of population)
0
World: 0.34

≈ Estimated from the region

From 1960 to 2050

How life here has changed, and where UN projections expect it to go. The dashed part is a projection.

Life expectancy

1960: 43.4 → 2026: 64.1 → 2050: 68.3

World

Children who die before 5 (per 1,000)

1960: 146 → 2026: 60 → 2050: 40

World

Children per woman

1960: 7.3 → 2026: 3.8 → 2050: 2.8

World

Living in cities (%)

1960: 11 → 2026: 34 → 2050: 48

World

Nobody chooses where they are born

In the game, the country is drawn by the real share of births: Madagascar comes up about once in every 129 lives.

Sources: World Bank (WDI), UN World Population Prospects, Our World in Data, World Happiness Report, UCDP and PRIO. Updated 2026-10-18.