Number of children under 5 in Nigeria
Nigeria: Number of children under 5 was 33.53 million people in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2023)
33.53 million people
Change on year
up 0.6%
World rank
3rd
of 236 countries
All-time high
33.53 million people
in 2023
All-time low
6.26 million people
in 1950
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Number of children under 5 in Nigeria, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
Nigeria recorded 33.53 million people for number of children under 5 in 2023. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.6% on the previous year and up 5.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of children under 5 in Nigeria peaked at 33.53 million people in 2023 and was at its lowest, 6.26 million people, in 1950.
That places Nigeria 3rd out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Number of children under 5 in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 6.26 million people | — |
| 1951 | 6.32 million people | +1.0% |
| 1952 | 6.41 million people | +1.3% |
| 1953 | 6.53 million people | +2.0% |
| 1954 | 6.69 million people | +2.5% |
| 1955 | 6.86 million people | +2.4% |
| 1956 | 7.01 million people | +2.2% |
| 1957 | 7.17 million people | +2.3% |
| 1958 | 7.33 million people | +2.3% |
| 1959 | 7.50 million people | +2.3% |
| 1960 | 7.68 million people | +2.3% |
| 1961 | 7.86 million people | +2.4% |
| 1962 | 8.05 million people | +2.4% |
| 1963 | 8.25 million people | +2.5% |
| 1964 | 8.46 million people | +2.5% |
| 1965 | 8.68 million people | +2.6% |
| 1966 | 8.90 million people | +2.6% |
| 1967 | 9.12 million people | +2.5% |
| 1968 | 9.36 million people | +2.6% |
| 1969 | 9.61 million people | +2.7% |
| 1970 | 9.88 million people | +2.8% |
| 1971 | 10.17 million people | +2.9% |
| 1972 | 10.49 million people | +3.1% |
| 1973 | 10.83 million people | +3.3% |
| 1974 | 11.21 million people | +3.5% |
| 1975 | 11.63 million people | +3.8% |
| 1976 | 12.09 million people | +3.9% |
| 1977 | 12.57 million people | +4.0% |
| 1978 | 13.07 million people | +4.0% |
| 1979 | 13.57 million people | +3.8% |
| 1980 | 14.03 million people | +3.4% |
| 1981 | 14.46 million people | +3.1% |
| 1982 | 14.87 million people | +2.8% |
| 1983 | 15.21 million people | +2.2% |
| 1984 | 15.51 million people | +2.0% |
| 1985 | 15.83 million people | +2.1% |
| 1986 | 16.13 million people | +1.9% |
| 1987 | 16.40 million people | +1.7% |
| 1988 | 16.67 million people | +1.6% |
| 1989 | 16.97 million people | +1.8% |
| 1990 | 17.32 million people | +2.1% |
| 1991 | 17.70 million people | +2.2% |
| 1992 | 18.12 million people | +2.4% |
| 1993 | 18.57 million people | +2.5% |
| 1994 | 19.02 million people | +2.5% |
| 1995 | 19.51 million people | +2.5% |
| 1996 | 20.02 million people | +2.6% |
| 1997 | 20.54 million people | +2.6% |
| 1998 | 21.06 million people | +2.5% |
| 1999 | 21.61 million people | +2.6% |
| 2000 | 22.23 million people | +2.9% |
| 2001 | 22.92 million people | +3.1% |
| 2002 | 23.65 million people | +3.2% |
| 2003 | 24.44 million people | +3.3% |
| 2004 | 25.24 million people | +3.3% |
| 2005 | 26.01 million people | +3.0% |
| 2006 | 26.76 million people | +2.9% |
| 2007 | 27.50 million people | +2.8% |
| 2008 | 28.25 million people | +2.7% |
| 2009 | 29.01 million people | +2.7% |
| 2010 | 29.76 million people | +2.6% |
| 2011 | 30.49 million people | +2.5% |
| 2012 | 31.19 million people | +2.3% |
| 2013 | 31.81 million people | +2.0% |
| 2014 | 32.35 million people | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 32.81 million people | +1.4% |
| 2016 | 33.14 million people | +1.0% |
| 2017 | 33.33 million people | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 33.42 million people | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 33.40 million people | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 33.30 million people | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 33.25 million people | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 33.33 million people | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 33.53 million people | +0.6% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's 33.53 million people is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1.25 million people, 26.8× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's 33.53 million people is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 2.19 million people, 15.3× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 6.81 million people | 6.26 million people | 7.50 million people | 10 |
| 1960s | 8.60 million people | 7.68 million people | 9.61 million people | 10 |
| 1970s | 11.55 million people | 9.88 million people | 13.57 million people | 10 |
| 1980s | 15.61 million people | 14.03 million people | 16.97 million people | 10 |
| 1990s | 19.35 million people | 17.32 million people | 21.61 million people | 10 |
| 2000s | 25.60 million people | 22.23 million people | 29.01 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 32.17 million people | 29.76 million people | 33.42 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 33.35 million people | 33.25 million people | 33.53 million people | 4 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More reference data data for Nigeria
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 19.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 5.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 81.9 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 121.16 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 14.27 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of children under 5 in Nigeria?
- Number of children under 5 in Nigeria was 33.53 million people in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of children under 5 recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 33.53 million people in 2023.
- What is the lowest number of children under 5 recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.26 million people in 1950.
- How does Nigeria rank for number of children under 5?
- Nigeria ranks 3rd out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is number of children under 5 rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of children under 5. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total population, measured on 1 July of the year shown. This only includes people aged 0-4.