Vanuatu People - 2021

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Population

303,009 (July 2021 est.)

Nationality

noun: Ni-Vanuatu (singular and plural)

adjective: Ni-Vanuatu

Ethnic groups

Melanesian 99.2%, non-Melanesian 0.8% (2016 est.)

Languages

local languages (more than 100) 63.2%, Bislama (official; creole) 33.7%, English (official) 2%, French (official) 0.6%, other 0.5% (2009 est.)

Religions

Protestant 70% (includes Presbyterian 27.9%, Anglican 15.1%, Seventh Day Adventist 12.5%, Assemblies of God 4.7%, Church of Christ 4.5%, Neil Thomas Ministry 3.1%, and Apostolic 2.2%), Roman Catholic 12.4%, customary beliefs 3.7% (including Jon Frum cargo cult), other 12.6%, none 1.1%, unspecified 0.2% (2009 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 33.65% (male 51,267/female 49,111)

15-24 years: 19.99% (male 29,594/female 30,050)

25-54 years: 36.09% (male 52,529/female 55,130)

55-64 years: 5.89% (male 8,666/female 8,904)

65 years and over: 4.39% (male 6,518/female 6,564) (2020 est.)

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 72.5

youth dependency ratio: 66.2

elderly dependency ratio: 12.3

potential support ratio: 8.1 (2020 est.)

Median age

total: 23 years

male: 22.6 years

female: 23.5 years (2020 est.)

Population growth rate

1.67% (2021 est.)

Birth rate

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

Death rate

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

Net migration rate

-1.32 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Population distribution

three-quarters of the population lives in rural areas; the urban populace lives primarily in two cities, Port-Vila and Lugenville; three largest islands - Espiritu Santo, Malakula, and Efate - accomodate over half of the populace

Urbanization

urban population: 25.7% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 2.55% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

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

Major urban areas - population

53,000 PORT-VILA (capital) (2018)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

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

15-24 years: 0.98 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 0.95 male(s)/female

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

65 years and over: 0.99 male(s)/female

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

Maternal mortality rate

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

Infant mortality rate

total: 14.69 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 16.14 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 13.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 74.87 years

male: 73.18 years

female: 76.66 years (2021 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.72 children born/woman (2021 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

49% (2013)

Drinking water source

improved: urban: 100% of population

rural: 89.7% of population

total: 92.3% of population

unimproved: urban: 0% of population

rural: 10.3% of population

total: 7.7% of population (2017 est.)

Current Health Expenditure

3.4% (2018)

Physicians density

0.17 physicians/1,000 population (2016)

Sanitation facility access

improved: urban: 91.6% of population

rural: 60.9% of population

total: 68.6% of population

unimproved: urban: 8.4% of population

rural: 39.1% of population

total: 31.4% 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

25.2% (2016)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

11.7% (2013)

Education expenditures

4.5% of GDP (2017)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 87.5%

male: 88.3%

female: 86.7% (2018)

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