Country page · Sub-Saharan Africa
If you were born in Burkina Faso
1 in 178 babies · 0.56% of births · about 754,401 a year
Right now, about 0.56% of the world's babies are born in Burkina Faso — 1 in 178, or roughly 754,401 a year and 2,067 a day. Life expectancy there is 61.3 years.
How the 1 in 178 is calculated
This number is not based on population. It uses births: Burkina Faso has about 754,401 births a year, and the world has about 134,147,481. Divide one by the other and you get 0.56% — 1 in 178. Using population instead would understate young countries and overstate ageing ones, so every draw is weighted by births.
Life in Burkina Faso, in numbers
| Indicator | Value | World rank |
|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy women 63.4 · men 59.1 | 61.3 years | 163rd highest of 172 countries |
| Chance of dying before 5 74.9 / 1,000 | 7.5% | 160th lowest of 170 countries |
| Chance of dying before 1 43.6 / 1,000 | 4.4% | 151st lowest of 170 countries |
| Mothers who die giving birth per 100,000 births | 242 | 143rd lowest of 170 countries |
| Children per woman | 4.11 | 150th lowest of 172 countries |
| Expected years of schooling | 9.3 years | 143rd highest of 168 countries |
| Tertiary enrollment | 10.0% | 136th highest of 168 countries |
| Income per person (PPP) GDP per capita, PPP | $3,072 | 155th highest of 170 countries |
| Income inequality closer to 0 = more equal | 37.40 | 65th highest of 157 countries |
| People living in cities | 28.9% | 158th highest of 172 countries |
| People working in farming | 51.8% | 150th lowest of 171 countries |
| People using the internet | 28.3% | 150th highest of 172 countries |
| Homicide per 100,000 people | 1.3 | 51st lowest of 155 countries |
| Health costs paid out of pocket share of health spending | 43.8% | 122nd lowest of 168 countries |
| Adults living with HIV | 0.50% | 58th highest of 142 countries |
| People who smoke | 11.6% | — |
How to read these numbers
Income is shown in purchasing-power-parity dollars, so it compares what money buys locally rather than market exchange rates. The under-5 rate is the share of babies who die before their fifth birthday; the maternal mortality ratio is per 100,000 live births. A Gini index closer to 0 means a more equal income distribution, and a higher number means a more unequal one.
Each indicator uses the most recent year with a non-empty value, which can differ by country; the rank compares this country with the other 171 in the dataset, not with every country on Earth. Where a value is missing, the page shows a dash rather than an estimate.
Burkina Faso compared with Sub-Saharan Africa
Life expectancy in Burkina Faso is 61.3 years, against a Sub-Saharan Africa average of 0.0. The under-5 death rate is 7.5%, versus 0.0% across the region. Income per person is $3,072, against $0 regionally; expected schooling is 9.3 years against 0.0. 28.9% of people live in cities, against 0.0% in the region.
| Indicator | Burkina Faso | Sub-Saharan Africa | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy | 61.3 years old | — | 73.3 years old |
| Under-5 deaths | 7.5% | — | 2.6% |
| Income per person (PPP) | $3,072 | — | $30,311 |
| Expected schooling | 9.3 years | — | 13.0 years |
| People in cities | 28.9% | — | 61.6% |
What a life there looks like
Put those numbers together and you get a life: about 61.3 years on average, with roughly 74.9 of every 1,000 babies dying before their fifth birthday. A child can expect 9.3 years of school, and income per person is around $3,072. These are averages — every life still lands somewhere on the distribution.
If you play as someone born in Burkina Faso
The game draws Burkina Faso in about 1 of every 178 births. From there the life runs year by year: 61.3 years of life expectancy on average, a 7.5% chance of dying before five, and an income of about $3,072 per person. Choices move the odds; the starting statistics do not.
Nearby and similar countries
- Chance of being born in Somalia — 1 in 161
- Chance of being born in Zambia — 1 in 187
- Chance of being born in Chad — 1 in 148
- All 172 countries
Frequently asked questions
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Source: World Bank World Development Indicators, with UN World Population Prospects 2024 and UN IGME for births and mortality. Values are the most recent non-empty year for each indicator; the year is noted where it differs. Page updated Oct 24, 2026.