Charts / Demographics
Life expectancy in Africa rose from 41 years in 1960 to 64 years in 2023
Average life expectancy at birth across Africa has climbed by more than 22 years since 1960, though it still trails the world average of 73 years.
Updated October 2026 · Data year 1960, 1990, 2010 and 2023
Figure 1
Average life expectancy at birth across Africa has climbed by more than 22 years since 1960, though it still trails the world average of 73 years.
63.8
2023 · years
Source: Our World in Data, UN DESA, Population Division · 1960, 1990, 2010 and 2023 · Figures are for the whole African continent. All values from UN World Population Prospects 2024 Revision. Latest available year is 2023.
Life expectancy at birth for Africa as a whole rose from 41.4 years in 1960 to 63.8 years in 2023, a gain of more than 22 years, according to the UN World Population Prospects 2024 Revision [S1][S2]. Most of the catch-up came after 1990, helped by falling child mortality and progress against HIV and malaria. Africa still sits below the 2023 world average of 73.2 years [S1]. The honest caveat: this is a continent-wide average that hides wide gaps between countries, and these are UN estimates, not a direct census count. The 2023 figure is the latest year in the 2024 Revision.
Takeaways
- Africa gained more than 22 years of life expectancy between 1960 and 2023
- The sharpest rise came after 1990
- Africa's 63.8 years still trails the world average of 73.2 years in 2023
Sources
- TIER B Our World in Data, Life expectancy (Africa and World series), reproducing UN World Population Prospects 2024 (2024). https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/life-expectancy
Carries exact Africa figures: 41.4 (1960), 51.7 (1990), 58.8 (2010), 63.8 (2023). World 73.2 (2023). Primary source is UN WPP 2024. - TIER A UN DESA, Population Division, World Population Prospects: The 2024 Revision, Data Portal (Life expectancy at birth, Africa) (2024). https://population.un.org/dataportal/data/indicators/61/locations/903/start/1960/end/2024/table/pivotbylocation
Primary source. Confirms Africa life expectancy at birth is reported from the 2024 Revision.