Pakistan People - 2021

Population

238,181,034 (July 2021 est.)

note: provisional results of Pakistan's 2017 national census estimate the country's total population to be 207,774,000

Nationality

noun: Pakistani(s)

adjective: Pakistani

Ethnic groups

Punjabi 44.7%, Pashtun (Pathan) 15.4%, Sindhi 14.1%, Saraiki 8.4%, Muhajirs 7.6%, Balochi 3.6%, other 6.3%

Languages

Punjabi 48%, Sindhi 12%, Saraiki (a Punjabi variant) 10%, Pashto (alternate name, Pashtu) 8%, Urdu (official) 8%, Balochi 3%, Hindko 2%, Brahui 1%, English (official; lingua franca of Pakistani elite and most government ministries), Burushaski, and other 8%

Religions

Muslim (official) 96.5% (Sunni 85-90%, Shia 10-15%), other (includes Christian and Hindu) 3.5% (2020 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 36.01% (male 42,923,925/female 41,149,694)

15-24 years: 19.3% (male 23,119,205/female 21,952,976)

25-54 years: 34.7% (male 41,589,381/female 39,442,046)

55-64 years: 5.55% (male 6,526,656/female 6,423,993)

65 years and over: 4.44% (male 4,802,165/female 5,570,595) (2020 est.)

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 64.4

youth dependency ratio: 57.2

elderly dependency ratio: 7.1

potential support ratio: 14 (2020 est.)

Median age

total: 22 years

male: 21.9 years

female: 22.1 years (2020 est.)

Population growth rate

1.99% (2021 est.)

Birth rate

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

Death rate

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

Net migration rate

-0.92 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Population distribution

the Indus River and its tributaries attract most of the settlement, with Punjab province the most densely populated

Urbanization

urban population: 37.4% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 2.1% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Major urban areas - population

16.459 million Karachi, 13.095 million Lahore, 3.542 million Faisalabad, 2.281 million Rawalpindi, 2.290 million Gujranwala, 1.164 million ISLAMABAD (capital) (2021)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

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

15-24 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.86 male(s)/female

total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Mother's mean age at first birth

22.8 years (2017/18 est.)

note: median age at first birth among women 25-49

Maternal mortality rate

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

Infant mortality rate

total: 55.26 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 59.58 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 50.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 69.37 years

male: 67.34 years

female: 71.5 years (2021 est.)

Total fertility rate

3.53 children born/woman (2021 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

34% (2018/19)

Drinking water source

improved: urban: 94.2% of population

rural: 89.9% of population

total: 91.5% of population

unimproved: urban: 5.8% of population

rural: 10.1% of population

total: 8.5% of population (2017 est.)

Current Health Expenditure

3.2% (2018)

Physicians density

0.98 physicians/1,000 population (2018)

Hospital bed density

0.6 beds/1,000 population (2017)

Sanitation facility access

improved: urban: 82.5% of population

rural: 62.9% of population

total: 70.1% of population

unimproved: urban: 17.5% of population

rural: 37.1% of population

total: 29.9% of population (2017 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

0.2% (2020 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

200,000 (2020 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

8,200 (2020 est.)

Major infectious diseases

degree of risk: high (2020)

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

vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria

animal contact diseases: rabies

note: widespread ongoing transmission of a respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is occurring throughout Pakistan; as of 19 July 2021, Pakistan has reported a total of 991,727 cases of COVID-19 or 448.96 cumulative cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 population with 10.33 cumulative deaths per 100,000 population; as of 19 July 2021, 4.21% of the population has received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine

Obesity - adult prevalence rate

8.6% (2016)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

23.1% (2017/18)

Education expenditures

2.9% of GDP (2017)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 59.1%

male: 71.1%

female: 46.5% (2015)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 8 years

male: 9 years

female: 8 years (2018)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24

total: 7.8%

male: 8.2%

female: 6.8% (2018 est.)