Population:
3,705,246 (July 2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 130
[see also: Population country ranks ]

Nationality:
noun: Panamanian(s)
adjective: Panamanian

Ethnic groups:
mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 65%, Native American 12.3% (Ngabe 7.6%, Kuna 2.4%, Embera 0.9%, Bugle 0.8%, other 0.4%, unspecified 0.2%), black or African descent 9.2%, mulatto 6.8%, white 6.7% (2010 est.)

Languages:
Spanish (official), indigenous languages (including Ngabere (or Guaymi), Buglere, Kuna, Embera, Wounaan, Naso (or Teribe), and Bri Bri), Panamanian English Creole (similar to Jamaican English Creole; a mixture of English and Spanish with elements of Ngabere; also known as Guari Guari and Colon Creole), English, Chinese (Yue and Hakka), Arabic, French Creole, other (Yiddish, Hebrew, Korean, Japanese)
note: many Panamanians are bilingual

Religions:
Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant 15%

Demographic profile:
Panama is a country of demographic and economic contrasts. It is in the midst of a demographic transition, characterized by steadily declining rates of fertility, mortality, and population growth, but disparities persist based on wealth, geography, and ethnicity. Panama has one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America and dedicates substantial funding to social programs, yet poverty and inequality remain prevalent. The indigenous population accounts for a growing share of Panama's poor and extreme poor, while the non-indigenous rural poor have been more successful at rising out of poverty through rural-to-urban labor migration. The government's large expenditures on untargeted, indirect subsidies for water, electricity, and fuel have been ineffective, but its conditional cash transfer program has shown some promise in helping to decrease extreme poverty among the indigenous population. Panama has expanded access to education and clean water, but the availability of sanitation and, to a lesser extent, electricity remains poor. The increase in secondary schooling - led by female enrollment - is spreading to rural and indigenous areas, which probably will help to alleviate poverty if educational quality and the availability of skilled jobs improve. Inadequate access to sanitation contributes to a high incidence of diarrhea in Panama's children, which is one of the main causes of Panama's elevated chronic malnutrition rate, especially among indigenous communities.

Age structure:
0-14 years: 26.7% (male 504,990/female 484,338)
[see also: Age structure 0-14 years country ranks ]
15-24 years: 17.11% (male 323,034/female 311,099)
[see also: Age structure 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 40.31% (male 756,400/female 737,205)
[see also: Age structure 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 7.72% (male 141,582/female 144,414)
[see also: Age structure 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 8.16% (male 138,922/female 163,262) (2016 est.)
[see also: Age structure 65 years and over country ranks ]
population pyramid:
A population pyramid illustrates the age and sex structure of a country's population and may provide insights about political and social stability, as well as economic development. The population is distributed along the horizontal axis, with males shown on the left and females on the right. The male and female populations are broken down into 5-year age groups represented as horizontal bars along the vertical axis, with the youngest age groups at the bottom and the oldest at the top. The shape of the population pyramid gradually evolves over time based on fertility, mortality, and international migration trends.

For additional information, please see the entry for Population pyramid on the Definitions and Notes page under the References tab.

Dependency ratios:
total dependency ratio: 53.4%
[see also: Dependency ratios - total dependency ratio country ranks ]
youth dependency ratio: 41.7%
[see also: Dependency ratios - youth dependency ratio country ranks ]
elderly dependency ratio: 11.7%
[see also: Dependency ratios - elderly dependency ratio country ranks ]
potential support ratio: 8.5% (2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - potential support ratio country ranks ]

Median age:
total: 28.9 years
[see also: Median age - total country ranks ]
male: 28.5 years
[see also: Median age - male country ranks ]
female: 29.3 years (2016 est.)
[see also: Median age - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 125

Population growth rate:
1.3% (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 89
[see also: Population growth rate country ranks ]

Birth rate:
18.1 births/1,000 population (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 98
[see also: Birth rate country ranks ]

Death rate:
4.9 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 195
[see also: Death rate country ranks ]

Net migration rate:
-0.3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 122
[see also: Net migration rate country ranks ]

Population distribution:
population is concentrated towards the center of the country, particularly around the Canal, but a sizeable segment of the populace also lives in the far west around David; the eastern third of the country is sparsely inhabited

Urbanization:
urban population: 66.6% of total population (2015)
[see also: Urbanization - urban population country ranks ]
rate of urbanization: 2.07% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
[see also: Urbanization - rate of urbanization country ranks ]

Major urban areas - population:
PANAMA CITY (capital) 1.673 million (2015)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - at birth country ranks ]
0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 0-14 years country ranks ]
15-24 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 65 years and over country ranks ]
total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

Maternal mortality rate:
94 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 78
[see also: Maternal mortality rate country ranks ]

Infant mortality rate:
total: 10.1 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - total country ranks ]
male: 10.9 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - male country ranks ]
female: 9.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.)
[see also: Infant mortality rate - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 135

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 78.6 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - total country ranks ]
male: 75.8 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - male country ranks ]
female: 81.6 years (2016 est.)
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 57

Total fertility rate:
2.33 children born/woman (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 87
[see also: Total fertility rate country ranks ]

Contraceptive prevalence rate:
52.2% (2009)
[see also: Contraceptive prevalence rate country ranks ]

Health expenditures:
8% of GDP (2014)
country comparison to the world: 64
[see also: Health expenditures country ranks ]

Physicians density:
1.65 physicians/1,000 population (2013)
[see also: Physicians density country ranks ]

Hospital bed density:
2.2 beds/1,000 population (2011)
[see also: Hospital bed density country ranks ]

Drinking water source:
improved: urban: 97.7% of population rural: 86.6% of population total: 94.7% of population
[see also: Drinking water source - Improved - total country ranks ]
unimproved: urban: 2.3% of population rural: 11.4% of population total: 5.3% of population (2015 est.)
[see also: Drinking water source - Unimproved - total country ranks ]

Sanitation facility access:
improved: urban: 83.5% of population rural: 58% of population total: 75% of population
[see also: Sanitation facility access - Total Improved country ranks ]
unimproved: urban: 16.5% of population rural: 42% of population total: 25% of population (2015 est.)
[see also: Sanitation facility access - Total UnImproved country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.69% (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 58
[see also: HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
17,100 (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 88
[see also: HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
500 (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 81
[see also: HIV/AIDS - deaths country ranks ]

Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: intermediate
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea
vectorborne disease: dengue fever
note: active local transmission of Zika virus by Aedes species mosquitoes has been identified in this country (as of August 2016); it poses an important risk (a large number of cases possible) among US citizens if bitten by an infective mosquito; other less common ways to get Zika are through sex, via blood transfusion, or during pregnancy, in which the pregnant woman passes Zika virus to her fetus (2016)

Obesity - adult prevalence rate:
26.5% (2014)
country comparison to the world: 55
[see also: Obesity - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]

Children under the age of 5 years underweight:
3.9% (2008)
country comparison to the world: 99
[see also: Children under the age of 5 years underweight country ranks ]

Education expenditures:
3.3% of GDP (2011)
country comparison to the world: 122
[see also: Education expenditures - percent of GDP country ranks ]

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 95%
[see also: Literacy - total country ranks ]
male: 95.7%
[see also: Literacy - male country ranks ]
female: 94.4% (2015 est.)
[see also: Literacy - female country ranks ]

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 13 years
[see also: School life expectancy - total country ranks ]
male: 12 years
[see also: School life expectancy - male country ranks ]
female: 13 years (2013)
[see also: School life expectancy - female country ranks ]

Child labor - children ages 5-14:
total number: 59,294
[see also: Child labor - children ages 5-14 - total number country ranks ]
percentage: 7%
[see also: Child labor - children ages 5-14 - percentage country ranks ]
note: data represent children ages 5-17 (2010 est.)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24
total: 12.6%
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - total country ranks ]
male: 11.2%
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - male country ranks ]
female: 14.9% (2014 est.)
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 99