In 2023, there were around 211 million children aged 0-4 years in Africa. In total, the population aged 17 years and younger amounted to approximately 680 million. In contrast, only approximately 52 million individuals were aged 65 years and older as of the same year. The youngest continent in the world Africa is the continent with the youngest population worldwide. As of 2024, around 40 percent of the population in Sub-Saharan Africa was aged 15 years and younger, compared to a global average of 25 percent. Although the median age on the continent has been increasing annually, it remains low at around 20 years. There are several reasons behind the low median age. One factor is the low life expectancy at birth: On average, the male and female populations in Africa live between 61 and 65 years, respectively. In addition, poor healthcare on the continent leads to high mortality, also among children and newborns, while the high fertility rate contributes to lowering the median age. Cross-country demographic differences Africa’s demographic characteristics are not uniform across the continent. The age structure of the population differs significantly from one country to another. For instance, Niger and Uganda have the lowest median age in Africa, at 15.1 and 16.1 years, respectively. Not surprisingly, these countries also register a high crude birth rate. On the other hand, North Africa is the region recording the highest life expectancy at birth, with Tunisia and Algeria leading the ranking in 2025.

Tunisia had the highest projected life expectancy at birth in Africa as of 2025. A newborn infant was expected to live about 77 years in the country. Algeria, Cabo Verde, Morocco, and Mauritius followed, with a life expectancy between 77 and 75 years. On the other hand, Nigeria registered the lowest average, at 54.8 years. Overall, the life expectancy in Africa was just over 64 years in the same year.

In 2023, Algiers was the city with the largest population in Algeria, with nearly 1.98 million inhabitants. The cities of Boumerdès and Oran followed with around 786,000 and 646,000 people, respectively. Most of the population is concentrated in the cities With an area of over 2.48 million square kilometers, Algeria is the largest country in Africa. Since the territory is predominantly desert, most of the population lives in the coastal areas by the Mediterranean Sea. This explains why the population density remains relatively low at around 18.6 inhabitants per square kilometer, although it is constantly increasing. In addition, due to internal migration from rural areas, as well as population growth, Algerian cities are becoming more populous and the urbanization rate in the country is increasing annually. In 2022, around 75 percent of the population lived in urban areas. Algeria’s population continues to grow Algeria ranks among the most populous countries in Africa, counting nearly 46 million inhabitants as of 2023. The total population has been increasing constantly and registered a growth rate of 1.63 percent in 2022. In the coming years, the population is forecast to reach around 49.6 million by 2029. The relatively high fertility rate, together with the rising life expectancy and declining mortality, would drive population growth in the country.

In 2022, Iran had the highest fertility rate in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region amongst females aged 10 to 14, and ** to **, at *** and *** births per 1,000 females respectively. Egypt had the highest fertility rate amongst females aged 15 to 19 at ** births per 1,000 females, and closely followed Iran with a fertility rate of *** births per 1000 females aged 24 to 29. Algeria had the lowest fertility amongst 15 to 29 year old women in MENA.

Life expectancy at birth in Africa is forecast to exceed 77 years between 2056 and 2065. Estimates show that the average years of life on the continent would grow significantly in the coming years. For comparison, in the ten years from 1996 to 2005, life expectancy was below 60 years of age. As of 2019, the population of North Africa lived longer than the other African regions. Indeed, Algeria, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisia were the African countries with the highest life expectancy. There, a newborn infant was expected to live between 76 and 78 years.

This statistic shows the life expectancy at birth in the Maghreb countries in North Africa from 2013 to 2023. In 2023, the average life expectancy at birth in Algeria was 76.26 years.

This statistic shows the total number of African immigrants living in France in 2021, by country of birth. An estimated ******* immigrants born in Algeria lived in France in 2021, as well as **** million immigrants from Morocco or Tunisia.