Homicides in Zambia
Zambia: Homicides was 1,153 deaths in 2021. ▲ Rising
Homicides in Zambia, 2000–2021
Source: World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths.
Analysis
The most recent figure for homicides in Zambia is 1,153 deaths, measured in 2021.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% on the previous year and up 5.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicides in Zambia peaked at 1,153 deaths in 2019 and was at its lowest, 878.29 deaths, in 2000.
Zambia ranks 53rd of 194 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Homicides in Zambia, year by year
| Year | deaths | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 878.29 deaths | — |
| 2001 | 881.61 deaths | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 943.71 deaths | +7.0% |
| 2003 | 958.97 deaths | +1.6% |
| 2004 | 923.33 deaths | -3.7% |
| 2005 | 900.23 deaths | -2.5% |
| 2006 | 901.38 deaths | +0.1% |
| 2007 | 933.54 deaths | +3.6% |
| 2008 | 938.32 deaths | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 1,005 deaths | +7.1% |
| 2010 | 1,047 deaths | +4.2% |
| 2011 | 1,095 deaths | +4.6% |
| 2012 | 1,104 deaths | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 1,087 deaths | -1.6% |
| 2014 | 1,096 deaths | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 1,092 deaths | -0.4% |
| 2016 | 1,123 deaths | +2.9% |
| 2017 | 1,143 deaths | +1.8% |
| 2018 | 1,138 deaths | -0.5% |
| 2019 | 1,153 deaths | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 1,151 deaths | -0.2% |
| 2021 | 1,153 deaths | +0.1% |
Zambia compared with similar countries
- Zambia's 1,153 deaths is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 743.83 deaths, 1.5× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Zambia's 1,153 deaths is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 971.62 deaths, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 926.42 deaths | 878.29 deaths | 1,005 deaths | 10 |
| 2010s | 1,108 deaths | 1,047 deaths | 1,153 deaths | 10 |
| 2020s | 1,152 deaths | 1,151 deaths | 1,153 deaths | 2 |
Countries ranked near Zambia
More social development data for Zambia
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 83,225 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 346 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 4 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 4 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 346 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0038 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is homicides in Zambia?
- Homicides in Zambia was 1,153 deaths in 2021, according to World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest homicides recorded in Zambia?
- The highest recorded value was 1,153 deaths in 2019.
- What is the lowest homicides recorded in Zambia?
- The lowest recorded value was 878.29 deaths in 2000.
- How does Zambia rank for homicides?
- Zambia ranks 53rd out of 194 countries with data for 2021.
- Is homicides rising or falling in Zambia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Zambia data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Homicides. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Estimated number of deaths from interpersonal violence in both sexes.