Life Expectancy at Birth in Senegal: 1800 to Today (and Tomorrow)

Welcome to MYRIAD, where we examine the statistics of human lives. Life expectancy at birth measures how many years a newborn could expect to live, given the mortality of the time and place. For Senegal, the story across three centuries is grounded in every statistical fact about the lives actually lived there. In the 2020s, life expectancy at birth in Senegal stands at 62 years, ranking #147 of 157 countries. This metric captures the heavy weight of infant and adult mortality, reflecting the fragile biological margins that have defined human existence across generations in this specific geography.

The historical arc reveals a slow, steady transformation across decades. In the 1800s estimate, life expectancy sat at 27 years, ticking upward through the 1810s estimate at 27.1, the 1820s estimate at 27.2, the 1830s estimate at 27.3, the 1840s estimate at 27.4, the 1850s estimate at 27.5, the 1860s estimate at 27.6, the 1870s estimate at 27.7, the 1880s estimate at 27.8, and the 1890s estimate at 27.9. By 1900 it was 28 years, matched by the 1900s estimate at 28. Progress accelerated slightly into the 1910s estimate at 29.6, the 1920s estimate at 31.2, the 1930s estimate at 32.8, and the 1940s estimate at 34.4, continuing through the 1950s at 36, the 1960s at 40, the 1970s at 44, the 1980s at 48, the 1990s at 49, the 2000s at 50, and the 2010s at 56.

Looking forward, projections map a continuation of this trajectory into the future. The 2030s projection stands at 63.2, followed by the 2040s projection at 64.4, the 2050s projection at 65.6, the 2060s projection at 66.8, the 2070s projection at 68, the 2080s projection at 69.2, the 2090s projection at 70.4, and the 2100s projection at 71.6. For someone born there across these changing eras, the horizon of possible days has expanded significantly, altering the very shape of a human life. Where do YOU rank among everyone ever born?