Nicaragua People - 2022
SOURCE: 2022 CIA WORLD FACTBOOK
Population
6,301,880 (2022 est.)
Nationality
noun: Nicaraguan(s)
adjective: Nicaraguan
Ethnic groups
Mestizo (mixed Amerindian and White) 69%, White 17%, Black 9%, Amerindian 5%
Languages
Spanish (official) 95.3%, Miskito 2.2%, Mestizo of the Caribbean coast 2%, other 0.5%; note - English and indigenous languages found on the Caribbean coast (2005 est.)
major-language sample(s):
La Libreta Informativa del Mundo, la fuente indispensable de información básica. (Spanish)
The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Religions
Roman Catholic 50%, Evangelical 33.2%, other 2.9%, none 0.7%, unspecified 13.2% (2017 est.)
Demographic profile
Despite being one of the poorest countries in Latin America, Nicaragua has improved its access to potable water and sanitation and has ameliorated its life expectancy, infant and child mortality, and immunization rates. However, income distribution is very uneven, and the poor, agriculturalists, and indigenous people continue to have less access to healthcare services. Nicaragua's total fertility rate has fallen from around 6 children per woman in 1980 to below replacement level today, but the high birth rate among adolescents perpetuates a cycle of poverty and low educational attainment.
Nicaraguans emigrate primarily to Costa Rica and to a lesser extent the United States. Nicaraguan men have been migrating seasonally to Costa Rica to harvest bananas and coffee since the early 20th century. Political turmoil, civil war, and natural disasters from the 1970s through the 1990s dramatically increased the flow of refugees and permanent migrants seeking jobs, higher wages, and better social and healthcare benefits. Since 2000, Nicaraguan emigration to Costa Rica has slowed and stabilized. Today roughly 300,000 Nicaraguans are permanent residents of Costa Rica - about 75% of the foreign population - and thousands more migrate seasonally for work, many illegally.
Age structure
0-14 years: 25.63% (male 811,731/female 777,984)
15-24 years: 19.51% (male 609,962/female 600,567)
25-54 years: 42.41% (male 1,254,683/female 1,376,052)
55-64 years: 6.63% (male 188,591/female 222,766)
65 years and over: 5.82% (male 159,140/female 201,965) (2020 est.)
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio: 54.4
youth dependency ratio: 46.4
elderly dependency ratio: 8
potential support ratio: 12.6 (2021 est.)
Median age
total: 27.3 years
male: 26.4 years
female: 28.2 years (2020 est.)
Population growth rate
0.92% (2022 est.)
Birth rate
16.52 births/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Death rate
5.17 deaths/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Net migration rate
-2.15 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2022 est.)
Population distribution
the overwhelming majority of the population resides in the western half of the country, with much of the urban growth centered in the capital city of Managua; coastal areas also show large population clusters
Urbanization
urban population: 59.8% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 1.45% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas - population
1.083 million MANAGUA (capital) (2022)
Sex ratio
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 0.91 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.84 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2022 est.)
Mother's mean age at first birth
19.2 years (2011/12 est.)
note: data represents median age at first birth among women 25-29
Maternal mortality ratio
198 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)
Infant mortality rate
total: 19.09 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 22.26 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 15.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2022 est.)
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 74.78 years
male: 72.56 years
female: 77.11 years (2022 est.)
Total fertility rate
1.8 children born/woman (2022 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate
80.4% (2011/12)
Drinking water source
improved: urban: 97.5% of population
rural: 62.6% of population
total: 83.2% of population
unimproved: urban: 2.5% of population
rural: 37.4% of population
total: 16.8% of population (2020 est.)
Current health expenditure
8.4% of GDP (2019)
Physicians density
1.67 physicians/1,000 population (2018)
Hospital bed density
0.9 beds/1,000 population (2017)
Sanitation facility access
improved: urban: 89.9% of population
rural: 66.5% of population
total: 80.3% of population
unimproved: urban: 10.1% of population
rural: 33.5% of population
total: 19.7% of population (2020 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate
0.3% (2021 est.)
Major infectious diseases
degree of risk: high (2020)
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
23.7% (2016)
Alcohol consumption per capita
total: 3.69 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
beer: 1.57 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine: 0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits: 2.1 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
4.6% (2011/12)
Education expenditures
4.6% of GDP (2020 est.)
Literacy
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 82.6%
male: 82.4%
female: 82.8% (2015)
Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)
total: 8.5%
male: 6.4%
female: 12.9% (2014 est.)
NOTE: The information regarding Nicaragua on this page is re-published from the 2022 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Nicaragua 2022 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Nicaragua 2022 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.
This page was last modified 01 Dec 23, Copyright © 23 ITA all rights reserved.