For every 100 baby girls, 106 boys were born in 2024 - the highest ratio in a decade
Kenya has recorded more male than female births for ten consecutive years, with the highest ratio of 106 boys to 100 girls in 2024.
What you need to know:
- Kenya has recorded more male than female births for ten consecutive years.
- Experts warn this trend could create a marriage market imbalance where economically disadvantaged men struggle to find partners.
For the 10th year running, the number of boys born in Kenya annually is more than the number of girls, a trend that may affect social stability in the future.
According to the Economic Survey 2025 released yesterday, 570,807 boys were born in 2024, compared to 539,706 girls. This results in a sex ratio of 106—meaning that for every 100 girls born, 106 boys were delivered. It marks the highest male-to-female birth ratio in the country over the past decade.
The last two Economic Surveys show that more boys than girls have been born every year since 2015.
The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) also noted a milestone in inclusivity: the official recognition of intersex individuals in national birth data. In 2024, nine intersex children were registered, up from four in 2023.
So, is it worrying for Kenya to see more males born than females? A 2022 article by the Pew Research Centre indicated that it is normal for males to outnumber females at birth because globally, “more boys are born than girls.”
“However, in most countries, females have lower mortality rates after birth and live longer than males, on average. Higher male mortality has been associated with behavioural factors and genetic differences,” it added.
“Because of these patterns, females outnumber males at older ages. In 2021, women comprised 56 per cent of the global population ages 65 and older, including 59 per cent in Europe and Northern America. Their share of the global 65-and-older population is projected to be 54 per cent by 2050. As populations age, they are more likely to become majority female,” it added.
Although in Africa and other countries like China and India, more boys being born would be celebrated because male offspring are more desirable, sociologists say it poses a dilemma.
In Kenya, if this trend continues, the country will witness a situation where there are more eligible males than the number of women available for marriage.
According to sociologist Roselyter Riang’a, having more adult men than women might be good economically, as there will be more manpower for various levels of production.
However, socially, she feels it poses problems for the marriage market because it will reduce the men’s pool, which means that men who are not economically endowed will struggle to find spouses.
Dr Riang’a says this is likely to create a scenario where younger men are kept by older women — likely those with children.
“The men will become vulnerable…because they want someone who will love them the way they are, and that will happen to be older women with children with nowhere to go who also want an identity in marriage,” she said.
