8 Billion Lives
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Where you could be born / Africa / Northern Africa

Born in Libya

About 1 in 1,062 people born in 2023 started life in Libya. A boy can expect to live 68 years and a girl 70, up from 31 and 36 in 1950. Most people live in cities, and nearly everyone has basic drinking water.

1 in 1,062
odds of being born here
124,400 births · Ranked 102nd of 230
68 / 70
years of life, boys / girls
Was 31 / 36 in 1950
$12,477
income per person a year
2021 dollars · Ranked 73rd of 203
88%
live in a city
The rest live in villages

Life and health

Life lasts about 36 years longer than in 1950. Child deaths fell from 387 in every 1,000 births to 33.

How long a life lasts

GirlsBoys

020406080195019852023

Years a baby born that year could expect to live.

Children who die before age 5
0100200300400195019852023

In every 1,000 births.

Life expectancy at birth68.3 years for boys, 70.4 for girlsUN WPP 2024
Children who die before age 532.5 in every 1,000 birthsUN WPP 2024
Deaths a year49,000UN WPP 2024
Doctors per 1,000 people2.0World Bank WDI
Children immunized against measles73%World Bank WDI
Adults living with HIV0.1%World Bank WDI
New tuberculosis cases a year57 per 100,000 peopleWorld Bank WDI

Family

Women had 7.0 children on average in 1950. Now it is 2.4.

Children per woman
02.557.510195019852023

Average over a lifetime.

Children per woman2.35UN WPP 2024
Average age of mothers at birth31.9 yearsUN WPP 2024

Money and work

Economic output per personabout $12,477 a year (2021 dollars, adjusted for prices)World Bank WDI
Unemployment18.7% of the workforce (2023)World Bank WDI
Price rises2.4% a year (2023)World Bank WDI
Growth in output per person9.0% (2023)World Bank WDI
Jobs in farming11% of jobsWorld Bank WDI
Self-employed26% of jobs (2025)World Bank WDI
Secondary school enrolment98% (can pass 100 when older students are counted)World Bank WDI

Daily life

The largest city is Tripoli, with 1.3 million people.

88%
live in cities
73%
have electricity at home
96%
have basic drinking water
Largest cities
People living there
Tripoli1.3 million
Benghazi757,490
Misratah355,657
Zliten203,790
Al Khums201,943
Languages
Share of people who can use each
Arabic74%
Arabic is official.

Cities and regions

Every state, province and large city with a page.

Largest regions

Tripoli1.6 million
Banghazi777,408
Az Zawiyah645,104
Misratah605,181
Al Marqab345,392
Al Jafarah310,233
An Nuqat al Khams298,040
Sabha District275,715
Al Wahat184,088
Jabal al Gharbi166,403

Sourced: GeoNames Population of each state, province or region.

Large cities

Sourced: GeoNames Cities with a page: a million people or more.

All 21 regions
  • Tripoli1.6 million
  • Banghazi777,408
  • Az Zawiyah645,104
  • Misratah605,181
  • Al Marqab345,392
  • Al Jafarah310,233
  • An Nuqat al Khams298,040
  • Sabha District275,715
  • Al Wahat184,088
  • Jabal al Gharbi166,403
  • Al Jabal al Akhdar158,645
  • Al Butnan141,499
  • Darnah127,212
  • Surt122,214
  • Al Marj117,878
  • Al Kufrah88,129
  • Wadi al Hayat57,018
  • Murzuq District47,237
  • Nalut28,431
  • Al Jufrah24,431
  • Wadi ash Shati'16,200

People on the move

About 2.1% as many people born here live abroad as live here. The most common destinations are Turkey, Italy, Jordan.

Where people born here live abroad
By country of residence, 2024
Turkey29,478
Italy29,343
Jordan28,839
Residents born abroad12.2% (2024)World Bank WDI
People born here who live abroadequal to 2.1% of the people who live hereUN DESA migrant stock
Where they go mostTurkey (29,478), Italy (29,343), Jordan (28,839)UN DESA migrant stock
Money sent home from abroadabout $16.0 million a year (2006)World Bank WDI

Safety nets

79% of older people receive a pension. Help for someone who loses a job reaches 0%.

79%
of older people receive a pension (2020)
0%
of unemployed people receive a benefit (2022)

Events in the data

The game draws real events from these records, so a life lived here can meet them.

Reported COVID-19 deaths, 2020 to 20246,437Our World in Data, from WHO
Significant earthquakes recorded since 19501; the deadliest, in 1963, killed about 300 people (magnitude 5.4)NOAA NCEI
Deaths in organized violence13,968 between 2011 and 2020UCDP

Now live it.

Born in Libya, to a family drawn from these numbers. Every life replays exactly from its seed.

Be born in Libya

Elsewhere in Africa

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How to read the sources. Every figure is sourced to a named dataset, shown beside it. A figure marked "Extrapolated" is estimated by a model because no survey covers the year. UN figures are for 2023, the latest year of UN estimates; other figures are the latest year their dataset has. Rank 1 is the highest figure among 230 countries and territories. All sources and licences