Population:
750,204
(July 2020 est.)
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
166
[see also: Population country ranks ]
Nationality:
noun:
Guyanese (singular and plural)
adjective:
Guyanese
Ethnic groups:
East Indian 39.8%, African descent 29.3%, mixed 19.9%, Amerindian 10.5%, other 0.5% (includes Portuguese, Chinese, white)
(2012 est.)
Languages:
English (official), Guyanese Creole, Amerindian languages (including Caribbean and Arawak languages), Indian languages (including Caribbean Hindustani, a dialect of Hindi), Chinese
(2014 est.)
Religions:
Protestant 34.8% (Pentecostal 22.8%, Seventh Day Adventist 5.4%, Anglican 5.2%, Methodist 1.4%), Hindu 24.8%, Roman Catholic 7.1%, Muslim 6.8%, Jehovah's Witness 1.3%, Rastafarian 0.5%, other Christian 20.8%, other 0.9%, none 3.1%
(2012 est.)
Demographic profile:
Guyana is the only English-speaking country in South America and shares cultural and historical bonds with the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana's two largest ethnic groups are the Afro-Guyanese (descendants of African slaves) and the Indo-Guyanese (descendants of Indian indentured laborers), which together comprise about three quarters of Guyana's population. Tensions periodically have boiled over between the two groups, which back ethnically based political parties and vote along ethnic lines. Poverty reduction has stagnated since the late 1990s. About one-third of the Guyanese population lives below the poverty line; indigenous people are disproportionately affected. Although Guyana's literacy rate is reported to be among the highest in the Western Hemisphere, the level of functional literacy is considerably lower, which has been attributed to poor education quality, teacher training, and infrastructure.
Guyana's emigration rate is among the highest in the world - more than 55% of its citizens reside abroad - and it is one of the largest recipients of remittances relative to GDP among Latin American and Caribbean counties. Although remittances are a vital source of income for most citizens, the pervasive emigration of skilled workers deprives Guyana of professionals in healthcare and other key sectors. More than 80% of Guyanese nationals with tertiary level educations have emigrated. Brain drain and the concentration of limited medical resources in Georgetown hamper Guyana's ability to meet the health needs of its predominantly rural population. Guyana has one of the highest HIV prevalence rates in the region and continues to rely on international support for its HIV treatment and prevention programs.
Age structure:
0-14 years: 23.91%
(male 91,317/female 88,025)
[see also: Age structure - 0-14 years country ranks ]
15-24 years: 21.23%
(male 81,294/female 77,987)
[see also: Age structure - 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 39.48%
(male 154,825/female 141,385)
[see also: Age structure - 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 8.37%
(male 29,385/female 33,386)
[see also: Age structure - 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 7.01%
(male 21,325/female 31,275)
(2020 est.)
[see also: Age structure - 65 years and over country ranks ]
population pyramid:
This is the population pyramid for Guyana. 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: 53.5
(2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - total dependency ratio country ranks ]
youth dependency ratio: 45.8
(2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - youth dependency ratio country ranks ]
elderly dependency ratio: 7.7
(2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - elderly dependency ratio country ranks ]
potential support ratio: 13.3
(2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - potential support ratio country ranks ]
Median age:
total: 27.5 years
[see also: Median age - total country ranks ]
male: 27.2 years
[see also: Median age - male country ranks ]
female: 27.9 years
(2020 est.)
[see also: Median age - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
146
Population growth rate:
0.72%
(2020 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
135
[see also: Population growth rate country ranks ]
Birth rate:
15.5 births/1,000 population
(2020 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
113
[see also: Birth rate country ranks ]
Death rate:
7.5 deaths/1,000 population
(2020 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
103
[see also: Death rate country ranks ]
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
(2020 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
84
[see also: Net migration rate country ranks ]
Population distribution:
population is heavily concentrated in the northeast in and around Georgetown, with noteable concentrations along the Berbice River to the east; the remainder of the country is sparsely populated
Urbanization:
urban population: 26.7% of total population
(2019)
[see also: Urbanization - urban population country ranks ]
rate of urbanization: 0.83% annual rate of change
(2015-20 est.)
[see also: Urbanization - rate of urbanization country ranks ]
Major urban areas - population:
110,000 GEORGETOWN (capital)
(2018)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - at birth country ranks ]
0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - 0-14 years country ranks ]
15-24 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 1.1 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 0.88 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio - 65 years and over country ranks ]
total population: 101.6 male(s)/female
(2020 est.)
[see also: Sex ratio country ranks ]
Mother's mean age at first birth:
20.8 years
(2009 est.)
note: median age at first birth among women 25-29
[see also: Mother's mean age at first birth country ranks ]
Maternal mortality rate:
667 deaths/100,000 live births
(2017 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
9
[see also: Maternal mortality rate country ranks ]
Infant mortality rate:
total: 27.6 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - total country ranks ]
male: 31.3 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - male country ranks ]
female: 23.8 deaths/1,000 live births
(2020 est.)
[see also: Infant mortality rate - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
64
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 69.5 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - total population country ranks ]
male: 66.5 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - male country ranks ]
female: 72.6 years
(2020 est.)
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
168
[See also: Healthy Life Expectancy ]
[See also: Health Performance ]
Total fertility rate:
1.89 children born/woman
(2020 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
131
[see also: Total fertility rate country ranks ]
Contraceptive prevalence rate:
33.9%
(2014)
[see also: Contraceptive prevalence rate country ranks ]
Drinking water source:
improved:
urban: 98.2% of population
[see also: Drinking water source - improved - urban country ranks ]
rural: 98.3% of population
[see also: Drinking water source - improved - rural country ranks ]
total: 98.3% of population
unimproved:
urban: 1.8% of population
rural: 1.7% of population
total: 1.7% of population
(2015 est.)
Current Health Expenditure:
4.2%
(2016)
[see also: Current Health Expenditure country ranks ]
Physicians density:
0.8 physicians/1,000 population
(2018)
[see also: Physicians density country ranks ]
Hospital bed density:
1.6 beds/1,000 population
(2014)
[see also: Hospital bed density country ranks ]
Sanitation facility access:
improved:
urban: 87.9% of population
(2015 est.)
[see also: Sanitation facility access - improved - urban country ranks ]
rural: 82% of population
(2015 est.)
[see also: Sanitation facility access - improved - rural country ranks ]
total: 83.7% of population
(2015 est.)
unimproved:
urban: 12.1% of population
(2015 est.)
rural: 18% of population
(2015 est.)
total: 16.3% of population
(2015 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
1.4%
(2018 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
35
[see also: HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
8,200
(2018 est.)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
107
[see also: HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS country ranks ]
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
<200
(2018 est.)
[see also: HIV/AIDS - deaths country ranks ]
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk:
very high
(2016)
food or waterborne diseases:
bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
(2016)
vectorborne diseases:
dengue fever and malaria
(2016)
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
Obesity - adult prevalence rate:
20.2%
(2016)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
103
[see also: Obesity - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]
Children under the age of 5 years underweight:
8.2%
(2014)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
70
[see also: Children under the age of 5 years underweight country ranks ]
Education expenditures:
6.3% of GDP
(2017)
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
25
[see also: Education expenditures country ranks ]
Literacy:
definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 88.5%
[see also: Literacy - total population country ranks ]
male: 87.2%
[see also: Literacy - male country ranks ]
female: 89.8%
(2015)
[see also: Literacy - female country ranks ]
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 11 years
[see also: School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) - total country ranks ]
male: 11 years
[see also: School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) - male country ranks ]
female: 12 years
(2012)
[see also: School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) - female country ranks ]
Unemployment, youth ages 15-24
total: 21.6%
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - total country ranks ]
male: 17.3%
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - male country ranks ]
female: 28%
(2017 est.)
[see also: Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world (CIA rank, may be based on non-current data):
62
NOTE: 1) The information regarding Guyana on this page is re-published from the 2020 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Guyana People 2020 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Guyana People 2020 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.
2) The rank that you see is the CIA reported rank, which may have the following issues:
a) They assign increasing rank number, alphabetically for countries with the same value of the ranked item, whereas we assign them the same rank.
b) The CIA sometimes assigns counterintuitive ranks. For example, it assigns unemployment rates in increasing order, whereas we rank them in decreasing order.
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This page was last modified 27-Jan-20