Equatorial Guinea People - 2021

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Population

857,008 (July 2021 est.)

Nationality

noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s)

adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean

Ethnic groups

Fang 85.7%, Bubi 6.5%, Mdowe 3.6%, Annobon 1.6%, Bujeba 1.1%, other 1.4% (1994 census)

Languages

Spanish (official) 67.6%, other (includes Fang, Bubi, Portuguese (official), French (official), Portuguese-based Creoles spoken in Ano Bom) 32.4% (1994 census)

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

nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, Muslim, Baha'i, animist, indigenous

Demographic profile

Equatorial Guinea is one of the smallest and least populated countries in continental Africa and is the only independent African country where Spanish is an official language. Despite a boom in oil production in the 1990s, authoritarianism, corruption, and resource mismanagement have concentrated the benefits among a small elite. These practices have perpetuated income inequality and unbalanced development, such as low public spending on education and health care. Unemployment remains problematic because the oil-dominated economy employs a small labor force dependent on skilled foreign workers. The agricultural sector, Equatorial Guinea’s main employer, continues to deteriorate because of a lack of investment and the migration of rural workers to urban areas. About three-quarters of the population lives below the poverty line.

Equatorial Guinea’s large and growing youth population – about 60% are under the age of 25 – is particularly affected because job creation in the non-oil sectors is limited, and young people often do not have the skills needed in the labor market. Equatorial Guinean children frequently enter school late, have poor attendance, and have high dropout rates. Thousands of Equatorial Guineans fled across the border to Gabon in the 1970s to escape the dictatorship of MACIAS NGUEMA; smaller numbers have followed in the decades since. Continued inequitable economic growth and high youth unemployment increases the likelihood of ethnic and regional violence.

Age structure

0-14 years: 38.73% (male 164,417/female 159,400)

15-24 years: 19.94% (male 84,820/female 81,880)

25-54 years: 32.72% (male 137,632/female 135,973)

55-64 years: 4.69% (male 17,252/female 22,006)

65 years and over: 3.92% (male 13,464/female 19,334) (2020 est.)

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 64.4

youth dependency ratio: 60.5

elderly dependency ratio: 3.9

potential support ratio: 25.5 (2020 est.)

Median age

total: 20.3 years

male: 19.9 years

female: 20.7 years (2020 est.)

Population growth rate

2.29% (2021 est.)

Birth rate

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

Death rate

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

Net migration rate

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

Population distribution

only two large cities over 30,000 people (Bata on the mainland, and the capital Malabo on the island of Bioko); small communities are scattered throughout the mainland and the five inhabited islands as shown in this population distribution map

Urbanization

urban population: 73.6% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 3.62% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

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

Major urban areas - population

297,000 MALABO (capital) (2018)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.03 male(s)/female

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

25-54 years: 1.01 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 0.78 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female

total population: 1 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Maternal mortality rate

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

Infant mortality rate

total: 63.25 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 66.12 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 60.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 66.35 years

male: 64.96 years

female: 67.78 years (2021 est.)

Total fertility rate

4.02 children born/woman (2021 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

12.6% (2011)

Drinking water source

improved: urban: 81.7% of population

rural: 32.1% of population

total: 67.6% of population

unimproved: urban: 18.3% of population

rural: 67.9% of population

total: 32.4% of population (2017 est.)

Current Health Expenditure

3% (2018)

Physicians density

0.4 physicians/1,000 population (2017)

Hospital bed density

2.1 beds/1,000 population (2010)

Sanitation facility access

improved: urban: 81.2% of population

rural: 63.4% of population

total: 76.2% of population

unimproved: urban: 18.8% of population

rural: 36.6% of population

total: 23.8% of population (2017 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

7.3% (2020 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

68,000 (2020 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

2,300 (2020 est.)

Major infectious diseases

degree of risk: very high (2020)

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

vectorborne diseases: malaria and dengue fever

animal contact diseases: rabies

Obesity - adult prevalence rate

8% (2016)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

5.6% (2011)

Education expenditures

N/A

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 95.3%

male: 97.4%

female: 93% (2015)

NOTE: The information regarding Equatorial Guinea 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 Equatorial Guinea 2021 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Equatorial Guinea 2021 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.