Life Expectancy at Birth for African Countries in 1978

Updated on March 17, 2026.

According to data from the World Bank, in 1978, among all African countries, Seychelles had the highest life expectancy at birth in Africa (68.03 years), followed by Mauritius (65.59 years), and Libya (63.8 years). On the other hand, South Sudan had the lowest life expectancy at birth in Africa in 1978 (37.59 years).

The chart and table below shows the life expectancy for African countries in 1978.

You can also see links below for the trend of the life expectancy for each African country.

The World Bank defines life expectancy at birth as "the average number of years a newborn is expected to live if mortality patterns at the time of its birth remain constant in the future".

Related Topics: World Bank Topic List
Data Source: World Bank.
See this for other years:
Total Life Expectancy at Birth for African Countries in 1978 (Years)
Life Expectancy at Birth for African Countries in 1978 (Years)
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Country Life Expectancy (Yrs)
Algeria 50.62
Angola 41.57
Benin 46.94
Botswana 61.49
Burkina Faso 45
Burundi 44.4
Cape Verde 60.38
Cameroon 50.32
Republic of Congo 56.25
Ivory Coast 50.36
Democratic Republic of the Congo 44.63
Djibouti 51.17
Central African Republic 49.16
Chad 43.02
Egypt 54.08
Equatorial Guinea 42.33
Eritrea 43.38
Eswatini 56.79
Ethiopia 41.51
Gabon 56.95
Gambia 43.57
Ghana 50.46
Guinea 41.88
Guinea-Bissau 42.91
Kenya 58.23
Lesotho 55.17
Liberia 43.57
Libya 63.8
Madagascar 50.02
Malawi 43
Mali 38.76
Mauritania 52.35
Mauritius 65.59
Morocco 53.55
Mozambique 43.96
Zambia 56.34
Zimbabwe 54.73
Tanzania 50.35
Uganda 45.6
Tunisia 62.15
Togo 50.9
Sudan 53.29
Somalia 47.01
South Africa 58.99
South Sudan 37.59
Sierra Leone 42.19
Senegal 46.6
Rwanda 46.17
Niger 38.27
Nigeria 45.35
Namibia 59.11
Comoros 49.7
Sao Tome and Principe 59.14
Seychelles 68.03

Trend of Life Expectancy at Birth for African Countries

Use the links below to see the trend of life expectancy at birth for the following African countries.