Ecuador People - 2021

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Population

17,093,159 (July 2021 est.)

Nationality

noun: Ecuadorian(s)

adjective: Ecuadorian

Ethnic groups

Mestizo (mixed Amerindian and White) 71.9%, Montubio 7.4%, Amerindian 7%, White 6.1%, Afroecuadorian 4.3%, Mulatto 1.9%, Black 1%, other 0.4% (2010 est.)

Languages

Spanish (Castilian) 93% (official), Quechua 4.1%, other indigenous 0.7%, foreign 2.2%; note - (Quechua and Shuar are official languages of intercultural relations; other indigenous languages are in official use by indigenous peoples in the areas they inhabit) (2010 est.)

printed major-language sample:
La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de información básica. (Spanish)

The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

Religions

Roman Catholic 74%, Evangelical 10.4%, Jehovah's Witness 1.2%, other 6.4% (includes Mormon, Buddhist, Jewish, Spiritualist, Muslim, Hindu, indigenous, African American, Pentecostal), atheist 7.9%, agnostic 0.1% (2012 est.)

note: data represent persons at least 16 years of age from five Ecuadoran cities

Demographic profile

Ecuador's high poverty and income inequality most affect indigenous, mixed race, and rural populations. The government has increased its social spending to ameliorate these problems, but critics question the efficiency and implementation of its national development plan. Nevertheless, the conditional cash transfer program, which requires participants' children to attend school and have medical check-ups, has helped improve educational attainment and healthcare among poor children. Ecuador is stalled at above replacement level fertility and the population most likely will keep growing rather than stabilize.

An estimated 2 to 3 million Ecuadorians live abroad, but increased unemployment in key receiving countries - Spain, the United States, and Italy - is slowing emigration and increasing the likelihood of returnees to Ecuador. The first large-scale emigration of Ecuadorians occurred between 1980 and 2000, when an economic crisis drove Ecuadorians from southern provinces to New York City, where they had trade contacts. A second, nationwide wave of emigration in the late 1990s was caused by another economic downturn, political instability, and a currency crisis. Spain was the logical destination because of its shared language and the wide availability of low-skilled, informal jobs at a time when increased border surveillance made illegal migration to the US difficult. Ecuador has a small but growing immigrant population and is Latin America's top recipient of refugees; 98% are neighboring Colombians fleeing violence in their country.

Age structure

0-14 years: 25.82% (male 2,226,240/female 2,138,219)

15-24 years: 17.8% (male 1,531,545/female 1,478,222)

25-54 years: 40.31% (male 3,333,650/female 3,480,262)

55-64 years: 7.92% (male 647,718/female 691,759)

65 years and over: 8.15% (male 648,761/female 728,491) (2020 est.)

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 53.8

youth dependency ratio: 42.1

elderly dependency ratio: 11.7

potential support ratio: 8.6 (2020 est.)

Median age

total: 28.8 years

male: 28 years

female: 29.6 years (2020 est.)

Population growth rate

1.16% (2021 est.)

Birth rate

16.71 births/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Death rate

5.15 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Net migration rate

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Population distribution

nearly half of the population is concentrated in the interior in the Andean intermontane basins and valleys, with large concentrations also found along the western coastal strip; the rainforests of the east remain sparsely populated

Urbanization

urban population: 64.4% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 1.62% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030

Major urban areas - population

3.043 million Guayaquil, 1.901 million QUITO (capital) (2021)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 0.96 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female

total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Maternal mortality rate

59 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 18.55 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 22.18 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 14.74 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 77.76 years

male: 74.8 years

female: 80.87 years (2021 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.07 children born/woman (2021 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

80.1% (2007/12)

Drinking water source

improved: urban: 100% of population

rural: 83.5% of population

total: 94% of population

unimproved: urban: 0% of population

rural: 16.2% of population

total: 6% of population (2017 est.)

Current Health Expenditure

8.1% (2018)

Physicians density

2.04 physicians/1,000 population (2016)

Hospital bed density

1.4 beds/1,000 population (2016)

Sanitation facility access

improved: urban: 100% of population

rural: 91.9% of population

total: 97.1% of population

unimproved: urban: 0% of population

rural: 8.1% of population

total: 2.1% of population (2017 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

0.3% (2020 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

45,000 (2020 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

Major infectious diseases

degree of risk: high (2020)

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria

Obesity - adult prevalence rate

19.9% (2016)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

5.2% (2018/19)

Education expenditures

5% of GDP (2015)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 92.8%

male: 93.8%

female: 92.1% (2017)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 15 years

male: 15 years

female: 16 years (2015)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24

total: 8.8%

male: 6.9%

female: 12% (2019 est.)

NOTE: The information regarding Ecuador on this page is re-published from the 2021 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Ecuador 2021 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Ecuador 2021 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.