In 2020, there were 14,605 babies born to 14,384 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers in Australia, and the birth rate was 75 per 1,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander females of reproductive age.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers
The birth rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers was higher than for non-Indigenous mothers
In 2020, the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander females giving birth was 75 per 1,000 females of reproductive age, compared with 55 per 1,000 non-Indigenous females.
Around 2 in 5 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers lived in Major cities or socioeconomically disadvantaged areas
In 2020, 37% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers lived in Major cities (up from 31% in 2012) and 44% lived in the most socioeconomically disadvantaged areas (down from 50% in 2012).
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander maternal age has increased over time
In 2020, the average age of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers was 26.5 years (up from 24.9 years in 2005), and 11% were aged under 20 years (down from 22% in 2005).
Many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers accessed antenatal care and fewer are smoking
In 2020, 71% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers accessed antenatal care in the first trimester of pregnancy, and 87% had 5 or more antenatal care visits. The proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers who reported smoking at anytime during pregnancy has fallen from 51% in 2010 to 43% in 2020.
2 in 3 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers had an induction or gave birth by caesarean section
In 2020, 36% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers had induced labour (up from 20% in 2005), and the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers giving birth by caesarean section has also risen (from 24% in 2005 to 32% in 2020).
Babies of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers
Most babies of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers were born at term
In 2020, 86% of babies of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers were born at term, and the most common gestational age was 39 weeks (27%).
The majority of babies of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers had a healthy birthweight and were a normal size for their gestational age
In 2020, 87% of babies of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers had a healthy birthweight and 73% were a normal size for their gestational age.
High-level data for Aboriginal and Torres Islander babies is available in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander babies summary and detailed data are available in the data visualisations in the Outcomes for babies of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers chapters and in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers and babies data tables.
In this report
