This statistic shows the total population of Sub-Saharan Africa from 2014 to 2024. Sub-Saharan Africa includes all countries south of the Sahara desert. In 2024, the total population of Sub-Saharan Africa amounted to approximately 1.29 billion inhabitants.

In 2022, around 55 percent of the total population of Sub-Saharan Africa was aged 15 to 64 years. Moreover, children younger than 15 years constituted a large 42 percent of the inhabitants. Overall, Africa has a young population. Only three percent of the individuals in the Sub-Saharan region were aged 65 years and older. As of 2023, Niger, Uganda, Angola, and Mali had a median age below 16.5 years, the lowest on the continent.

Graph and download economic data for Population Growth: All Income Levels for Sub-Saharan Africa (SPPOPGROWSSF) from 1961 to 2024 about Sub-Saharan Africa, income, population, and rate.

Nearly eight million refugees lived in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2023. The refugee population in the region has enormously increased in the last decade. As of 2010, 2.2 million individuals forcibly displaced dwelled in Sub-Saharan Africa. Uganda hosted the largest number of refugees in Africa.

The average for 2023 based on 47 countries was 0.33 percent. The highest value was in Nigeria: 2.81 percent and the lowest value was in Sao Tome and Principe: 0 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Graph and download economic data for Population, Total: All Income Levels for Sub-Saharan Africa (SPPOPTOTLSSF) from 1960 to 2023 about Sub-Saharan Africa, income, and population.

Historical chart and dataset showing total population for Sub-Saharan Africa by year from 1950 to 2025.

Graph and download economic data for Population Growth for Developing Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SPPOPGROWSSA) from 1961 to 2024 about Sub-Saharan Africa, population, and rate.

The total labor force in sub-Saharan Africa was estimated at 451 million people in 2022. By 2023, the number is expected to reach 467 million. According to the source estimates, within the period observed, the total of both the employed and unemployed individuals in the region increased annually.

Whole-genome Illumina 150bp paired-end sequencing reads of P. ovale parasite DNA from clinical blood isolates collected across sub-Saharan Africa. Samples enriched for parasite DNA via custom hybrid capture or leukodepletion at time of collection.

Historical chart and dataset showing Sub-Saharan Africa population density by year from 1961 to 2022.

Graph and download economic data for Employment to Population Ratio for Developing Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SLEMPTOTLSPZSSSA) from 1991 to 2024 about Sub-Saharan Africa, employment-population ratio, employment, and population.

The average for 2022 based on 46 countries was 2.16 percent. The highest value was in the Seychelles: 29.83 percent and the lowest value was in Chad: 0 percent. The indicator is available from 1998 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Graph and download economic data for Population ages 65 and above for Developing Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SPPOP65UPTOZSSSA) from 1960 to 2023 about Sub-Saharan Africa, 65-years +, and population.

Graph and download economic data for Population Ages 15 to 64 for Developing Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SPPOP1564TOZSSSA) from 1960 to 2024 about Sub-Saharan Africa, 15 to 64 years, and population.

Social distancing is a public health measure intended to reduce infectious disease transmission, by maintaining physical distance between individuals or households. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, populations in many countries around the world have been advised to maintain social distance (also referred to as physical distance), with distances of 6 feet or 2 metres commonly advised. Feasibility of social distancing is dependent on the availability of space and the number of people, which varies geographically. In locations where social distancing is difficult, a focus on alternative measures to reduce disease transmission may be needed. To help identify locations where social distancing is difficult, we have developed an ease of social distancing index. By index, we mean a composite measure, intended to highlight variations in ease of social distancing in urban settings, calculated based on the space available around buildings and estimated population density. Index values were calculated for small spatial units (vector polygons), typically bounded by roads, rivers or other features. This dataset provides index values for small spatial units within urban areas across Sub-Saharan Africa. Measures of population density were calculated from high-resolution gridded population datasets from WorldPop, and the space available around buildings was calculated using building footprint polygons derived from satellite imagery (Ecopia.AI and Maxar Technologies. 2020). These data were produced by the WorldPop Research Group at the University of Southampton. This work was part of the GRID3 project with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development. Project partners included the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) in the Earth Institute at Columbia University, and the Flowminder Foundation.

United States - Population, Total for Developing Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa was 1259782580.00000 Persons in January of 2023, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Population, Total for Developing Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa reached a record high of 1259782580.00000 in January of 2023 and a record low of 227191484.00000 in January of 1960. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Population, Total for Developing Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on June of 2025.

This is the data underlying the table for Prediction of extended high viremia among newly HIV-1-infected persons in sub-Saharan Africa

Social distancing is a public health measure intended to reduce infectious disease transmission, by maintaining physical distance between individuals or households. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, populations in many countries around the world have been advised to maintain social distance (also referred to as physical distance), with distances of 6 feet or 2 metres commonly advised. Feasibility of social distancing is dependent on the availability of space and the number of people, which varies geographically. In locations where social distancing is difficult, a focus on alternative measures to reduce disease transmission may be needed. To help identify locations where social distancing is difficult, we have developed an ease of social distancing index. By index, we mean a composite measure, intended to highlight variations in ease of social distancing in urban settings, calculated based on the space available around buildings and estimated population density. Index values were calculated for small spatial units (vector polygons), typically bounded by roads, rivers or other features. This dataset provides index values for small spatial units within urban areas across Sub-Saharan Africa. Measures of population density were calculated from high-resolution gridded population datasets from WorldPop, and the space available around buildings was calculated using building footprint polygons derived from satellite imagery (Ecopia.AI and Maxar Technologies. 2020). These data were produced by the WorldPop Research Group at the University of Southampton. This work was part of the GRID3 project with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development. Project partners included the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) in the Earth Institute at Columbia University, and the Flowminder Foundation.

Historical chart and dataset showing Sub-Saharan Africa rural population by year from 1960 to 2023.