Fertility rate: births per woman (Human Fertility) in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: Fertility rate: births per woman (Human Fertility) was 3.1 live births per woman in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
3.1 live births per woman
Change on year
down 2.1%
World rank
57th
of 236 countries
All-time high
6.26 live births per woman
in 1969
All-time low
3.1 live births per woman
in 2023
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Fertility rate: births per woman in Papua New Guinea, 1950–2023
Source: Human Fertility Database (2026); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in live births per woman.
Analysis
The most recent figure for fertility rate: births per woman in Papua New Guinea is 3.1 live births per woman, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.
The figure is down 2.1% on the previous year and down 15.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate: births per woman in Papua New Guinea peaked at 6.26 live births per woman in 1969 and was at its lowest, 3.1 live births per woman, in 2023.
That places Papua New Guinea 57th out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.
Fertility rate: births per woman (Human Fertility) in Papua New Guinea, year by year
| Year | live births per woman | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 5.71 live births per woman | — |
| 1951 | 5.74 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1952 | 5.76 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1953 | 5.79 live births per woman | +0.6% |
| 1954 | 5.78 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1955 | 5.82 live births per woman | +0.7% |
| 1956 | 5.84 live births per woman | +0.4% |
| 1957 | 5.89 live births per woman | +0.8% |
| 1958 | 5.93 live births per woman | +0.7% |
| 1959 | 5.96 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1960 | 6.02 live births per woman | +1.0% |
| 1961 | 6.07 live births per woman | +0.9% |
| 1962 | 6.13 live births per woman | +1.0% |
| 1963 | 6.15 live births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1964 | 6.19 live births per woman | +0.6% |
| 1965 | 6.2 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1966 | 6.23 live births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1967 | 6.24 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1968 | 6.25 live births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1969 | 6.26 live births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1970 | 6.25 live births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1971 | 6.23 live births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1972 | 6.2 live births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1973 | 6.16 live births per woman | -0.6% |
| 1974 | 6.11 live births per woman | -0.7% |
| 1975 | 6.07 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 1976 | 6.02 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 1977 | 5.96 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1978 | 5.88 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 1979 | 5.79 live births per woman | -1.6% |
| 1980 | 5.71 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 1981 | 5.64 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1982 | 5.59 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1983 | 5.56 live births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1984 | 5.51 live births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1985 | 5.47 live births per woman | -0.8% |
| 1986 | 5.42 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1987 | 5.36 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1988 | 5.3 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1989 | 5.24 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1990 | 5.18 live births per woman | -1.2% |
| 1991 | 5.11 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 1992 | 5.03 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 1993 | 4.96 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 1994 | 4.87 live births per woman | -1.9% |
| 1995 | 4.78 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 1996 | 4.73 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1997 | 4.68 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1998 | 4.63 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 1999 | 4.59 live births per woman | -1.0% |
| 2000 | 4.53 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 2001 | 4.47 live births per woman | -1.2% |
| 2002 | 4.42 live births per woman | -1.1% |
| 2003 | 4.36 live births per woman | -1.3% |
| 2004 | 4.28 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2005 | 4.22 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 2006 | 4.15 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 2007 | 4.08 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 2008 | 4.01 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 2009 | 3.94 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2010 | 3.88 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 2011 | 3.82 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 2012 | 3.75 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2013 | 3.68 live births per woman | -1.7% |
| 2014 | 3.62 live births per woman | -1.6% |
| 2015 | 3.56 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2016 | 3.5 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2017 | 3.43 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2018 | 3.38 live births per woman | -1.5% |
| 2019 | 3.32 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2020 | 3.27 live births per woman | -1.4% |
| 2021 | 3.21 live births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2022 | 3.17 live births per woman | -1.6% |
| 2023 | 3.1 live births per woman | -2.1% |
Papua New Guinea compared with similar countries
- Papua New Guinea's 3.1 live births per woman is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 3.15 live births per woman, 98% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Papua New Guinea's 3.1 live births per woman is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 2.13 live births per woman, 1.5× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 5.82 live births per woman | 5.71 live births per woman | 5.96 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1960s | 6.18 live births per woman | 6.02 live births per woman | 6.26 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1970s | 6.07 live births per woman | 5.79 live births per woman | 6.25 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.48 live births per woman | 5.24 live births per woman | 5.71 live births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.86 live births per woman | 4.59 live births per woman | 5.18 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.25 live births per woman | 3.94 live births per woman | 4.53 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.59 live births per woman | 3.32 live births per woman | 3.88 live births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.19 live births per woman | 3.1 live births per woman | 3.27 live births per woman | 4 |
Countries ranked near Papua New Guinea
- 55 Kiribati 3.15 live births per woman compare
- 56 Tonga 3.13 live births per woman compare
- 58 Tajikistan 3.07 live births per woman compare
- 59 Kazakhstan 3.01 live births per woman compare
- 60 Marshall Islands 2.92 live births per woman compare
More reference data data for Papua New Guinea
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.2042 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.0498 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.3515 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0007 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.3515 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.6846 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.5295 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2811 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.89 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0038 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate: births per woman in Papua New Guinea?
- Fertility rate: births per woman in Papua New Guinea was 3.1 live births per woman in 2023, according to Human Fertility Database (2026); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest fertility rate: births per woman recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The highest recorded value was 6.26 live births per woman in 1969.
- What is the lowest fertility rate: births per woman recorded in Papua New Guinea?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.1 live births per woman in 2023.
- How does Papua New Guinea rank for fertility rate: births per woman?
- Papua New Guinea ranks 57th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fertility rate: births per woman rising or falling in Papua New Guinea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 15.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Papua New Guinea data come from?
- The figures come from Human Fertility Database (2026); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Fertility rate: births per woman. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Average number of live births a hypothetical cohort of women would have at the end of their reproductive period if they were subject during their whole lives to the fertility rates of a given period and if they were not subject to mortality.