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Country page · Sub-Saharan Africa

If you were born in Tanzania

1 in 55 babies · 1.83% of births · about 2,455,067 a year

Right now, about 1.83% of the world's babies are born in Tanzania — 1 in 55, or roughly 2,455,067 a year and 6,726 a day. Life expectancy there is 67.2 years.

1 in 55 chance of being born here, by births
1.83% of the world's births
2,455,067 babies born each year

How the 1 in 55 is calculated

This number is not based on population. It uses births: Tanzania has about 2,455,067 births a year, and the world has about 134,147,481. Divide one by the other and you get 1.83% — 1 in 55. Using population instead would understate young countries and overstate ageing ones, so every draw is weighted by births.

Life in Tanzania, in numbers

Indicator Value World rank
Life expectancy women 70.0 · men 64.4 67.2 years 134th highest of 172 countries
Chance of dying before 5 37.0 / 1,000 3.7% 125th lowest of 170 countries
Chance of dying before 1 28.7 / 1,000 2.9% 123rd lowest of 170 countries
Mothers who die giving birth per 100,000 births 276 146th lowest of 170 countries
Children per woman 4.54 161st lowest of 172 countries
Expected years of schooling 9.1 years 147th highest of 168 countries
Tertiary enrollment 4.0% 157th highest of 168 countries
Income per person (PPP) GDP per capita, PPP $4,471 141st highest of 170 countries
Income inequality closer to 0 = more equal 40.50 40th highest of 157 countries
People living in cities 36.9% 144th highest of 172 countries
People working in farming 64.6% 162nd lowest of 171 countries
People using the internet 31.2% 147th highest of 172 countries
Homicide per 100,000 people 3.7 96th lowest of 155 countries
Health costs paid out of pocket share of health spending 27.9% 80th lowest of 168 countries
Adults living with HIV 3.50% 11th highest of 142 countries
People who smoke 7.7% —

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.

Tanzania compared with Sub-Saharan Africa

Life expectancy in Tanzania is 67.2 years, against a Sub-Saharan Africa average of 0.0. The under-5 death rate is 3.7%, versus 0.0% across the region. Income per person is $4,471, against $0 regionally; expected schooling is 9.1 years against 0.0. 36.9% of people live in cities, against 0.0% in the region.

Indicator Tanzania Sub-Saharan Africa World
Life expectancy 67.2 yrs — 73.3 yrs
Under-5 deaths 3.7% — 2.6%
Income per person (PPP) $4,471 — $30,311
Expected schooling 9.1 yrs — 13.0 yrs
People in cities 36.9% — 61.6%

What a life there looks like

Put those numbers together and you get a life: about 67.2 years on average, with roughly 37.0 of every 1,000 babies dying before their fifth birthday. A child can expect 9.1 years of school, and income per person is around $4,471. These are averages — every life still lands somewhere on the distribution.

If you play as someone born in Tanzania

The game draws Tanzania in about 1 of every 55 births. From there the life runs year by year: 67.2 years of life expectancy on average, a 3.7% chance of dying before five, and an income of about $4,471 per person. Choices move the odds; the starting statistics do not.

Be born

Nearby and similar countries

Frequently asked questions

What are the odds of being born in Tanzania?
About 1.83% of the world's births happen in Tanzania — 1 in 55, or roughly 2,455,067 babies a year.
What is life expectancy in Tanzania?
The latest figure is 67.2 years (women 70.0, men 64.4). The chance of dying before age 5 is about 3.7%.
How many babies are born in Tanzania each year?
About 2,455,067 — roughly 6,726 a day and 280 an hour.
Is Tanzania a good country to be born in, in the game?
The game does not rank countries. Being born in Tanzania simply applies its real statistics: life expectancy, mortality, income and schooling shape the odds, but luck and choices still decide how the life goes.

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 24 Oct 2026.

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