Marshall Islands People - 2021

Population

78,831 (July 2021 est.)

Nationality

noun: Marshallese (singular and plural)

adjective: Marshallese

Ethnic groups

Marshallese 92.1%, mixed Marshallese 5.9%, other 2% (2006 est.)

Languages

Marshallese (official) 98.2%, other languages 1.8% (1999 est.)

note: English (official), widely spoken as a second language

Religions

Protestant 80.5% (United Church of Christ 47%, Assembly of God 16.2%, Bukot Nan Jesus 5.4%, Full Gospel 3.3%, Reformed Congressional Church 3%, Salvation Army 1.9%, Seventh Day Adventist 1.4%, Meram in Jesus 1.2%, other Protestant 1.1%), Roman Catholic 8.5%, Mormon 7%, Jehovah's Witness 1.7%,  other 1.2%, none 1.1% (2011 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 32.94% (male 13,090/female 12,575)

15-24 years: 19.09% (male 7,568/female 7,308)

25-54 years: 37.35% (male 14,834/female 14,270)

55-64 years: 5.92% (male 2,269/female 2,341)

65 years and over: 4.7% (male 1,805/female 1,857) (2020 est.)

Median age

total: 23.8 years

male: 23.6 years

female: 23.9 years (2020 est.)

Population growth rate

1.37% (2021 est.)

Birth rate

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

Death rate

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

Net migration rate

-4.43 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Population distribution

most people live in urban clusters found on many of the country's islands; more than two-thirds of the population lives on the atolls of Majuro and Ebeye

Urbanization

urban population: 78.2% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 0.61% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas - population

31,000 MAJURO (capital) (2018)

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: 1.04 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female

total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 22.2 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 25.83 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 18.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 74.38 years

male: 72.12 years

female: 76.76 years (2021 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.81 children born/woman (2021 est.)

Drinking water source

improved: urban: 99.8% of population

rural: 99.7% of population

total: 99.8% of population

unimproved: urban: 0.2% of population

rural: 0.3% of population

total: 0.2% of population (2017 est.)

Current Health Expenditure

17.6% (2018)

Physicians density

0.42 physicians/1,000 population (2012)

Hospital bed density

2.7 beds/1,000 population (2010)

Sanitation facility access

improved: urban: 96.3% of population

rural: 65.4% of population

total: 89.1% of population

unimproved: urban: 15.5% of population

rural: 34.6% of population

total: 10.9% of population (2017 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

N/A

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

N/A

HIV/AIDS - deaths

N/A

Major infectious diseases

degree of risk: high (2020)

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea

vectorborne diseases: malaria

Obesity - adult prevalence rate

52.9% (2016)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

11.9% (2017)

Education expenditures

N/A

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 98.3%

male: 98.3%

female: 98.2% (2011)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 10 years

male: 10 years

female: 10 years (2019)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24

male: 12.2%

female: 8.7%