West Bank Index

West Bank People - 2021

SOURCE: 2021 CIA WORLD FACTBOOK

Population

2,949,246 (July 2021 est.)

note: approximately 418,600 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank (2018); approximately 215,900 Israeli settlers live in East Jerusalem (2017)

Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood)

printed major-language sample:
كتاب حقائق العالم، المصدر الذي لا يمكن الاستغناء عنه للمعلومات الأساسية (Arabic)

The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

Religions

Muslim 80-85% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 12-14%, Christian 1-2.5% (mainly Greek Orthodox), other, unaffiliated, unspecified

MENA religious affiliation

Age structure

0-14 years: 35.31% (male 525,645/female 498,458)

15-24 years: 20.75% (male 307,420/female 294,469)

25-54 years: 35.19% (male 516,758/female 503,626)

55-64 years: 5.12% (male 76,615/female 72,006)

65 years and over: 3.62% (male 48,387/female 56,650) (2020 est.)

Dependency ratios

total dependency ratio: 71.2

youth dependency ratio: 65.7

elderly dependency ratio: 5.5

potential support ratio: 18.2 (2020 est.)

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Median age

total: 21.9 years

male: 21.7 years

female: 22.2 years (2020 est.)

Population growth rate

1.72% (2021 est.)

Birth rate

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

Death rate

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

Net migration rate

-4.16 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)

Population distribution

Palestinian settlements are primarily located in the central to western half of the territory; Jewish settlements are found in pockets throughout, particularly in the northeast, north-central, and around Jerusalem

Urbanization

urban population: 77% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 2.85% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

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

25-54 years: 1.03 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female

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

Maternal mortality rate

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

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Infant mortality rate

total: 15.68 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 18.14 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 13.07 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 76.12 years

male: 74.02 years

female: 78.36 years (2021 est.)

Total fertility rate

3.02 children born/woman (2021 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

57.3% (2019/20)

note: includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Drinking water source

improved: urban: 97.1% of population

rural: 97.1% of population

total: 96.8% of population

unimproved: urban: 2.9% of population

rural: 2.9% of population

total: 3.2% of population (2017 est.)

note: includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Physicians density

1.45 physicians/1,000 population (2017)

Hospital bed density

1.3 beds/1,000 population (2018)

Sanitation facility access

improved: urban: 100% of population

rural: 99.3% of population

total: 99.8% of population

unimproved: urban: 0% of population

rural: 0.7% of population

total: 0.2% of population (2017 est.)

note: note includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

N/A

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

N/A

HIV/AIDS - deaths

N/A

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

2.1% (2019/20)

note: estimate is for Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Education expenditures

5.3% of GDP (2017)

note: includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 97.2%

male: 98.7%

female: 95.7% (2018)

note: estimates are for Gaza and the West Bank

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

total: 13 years

male: 13 years

female: 14 years (2019)

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24

total: 40.2%

male: 34.8%

female: 67.2% (2019 est.)

note: includes Gaza Strip

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