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.

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.

This statistic shows the population change in Sub-Saharan Africa from 2014 to 2024. Sub-Saharan Africa includes almost all countries south of the Saharan desert. In 2024, Sub-Saharan Africa's population increased by approximately 2.44 percent compared to the previous year.

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

As of 2023, the total population of Africa was over 1.48 billion. The number of inhabitants on the continent increased annually from 2000 onwards. In comparison, the total population was around 831 million in 2000. According to forecasts, Africa will experience impressive population growth in the coming years and will close the gap with the Asian population by 2100. Over 200 million people in Nigeria Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa. In 2025, the country’s population exceeded 237 million people. Ethiopia followed with a population of around 135 million, while Egypt ranked third, accounting for approximately 118 million individuals. Other leading African countries in terms of population were the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, South Africa, and Kenya. Additionally, Niger, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Chad recorded the highest population growth rate on the continent in 2023, with the number of residents rising by over 3.08 percent compared to the previous year. On the other hand, the populations of Tunisia and Eswatini registered a growth rate below 0.85 percent, while for Mauritius and Seychelles, it was negative. Drivers for population growth Several factors have driven Africa’s population growth. For instance, the annual number of births on the continent has risen constantly over the years, jumping from nearly 32 million in 2000 to almost 46 million in 2023. Moreover, despite the constant decline in the number of births per woman, the continent’s fertility rate has remained considerably above the global average. Each woman in Africa had an average of over four children throughout her reproductive years as of 2023, compared to a world rate of around two births per woman. At the same time, improved health and living conditions contributed to decreasing mortality rate and increasing life expectancy in recent years, driving population growth.

Graph and download economic data for Population, Total for Developing Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SPPOPTOTLSSA) from 1960 to 2024 about Sub-Saharan Africa and population.

The average for 2023 based on 47 countries was 0.33 percent. The highest value was in Nigeria: 2.84 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 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.

Graph and download economic data for Population ages 65 and above for Developing Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SPPOP65UPTOZSSSA) from 1960 to 2024 about Sub-Saharan Africa, 65-years +, and population.

Historical dataset showing Sub-Saharan Africa population growth rate by year from 1961 to 2023.

Graph and download economic data for Population Ages 0 to 14 for Developing Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SPPOP0014TOZSSSA) from 1960 to 2024 about Sub-Saharan Africa, 0 to 14 years, and population.

A flexible model to reconstruct education-specific fertility rates: Sub-saharan Africa case study

The fertility rates are consistent with the United Nation World Population Prospects (UN WPP) 2022 fertility rates.

The Bayesian model developed to reconstruct the fertility rates using Demographic and Health Surveys and the UN WPP is published in a working paper.

Abstract

The future world population growth and size will be largely determined by the pace of fertility decline in sub-Saharan Africa. Correct estimates of education-specific fertility rates are crucial for projecting the future population. Yet, consistent cross-country comparable estimates of education-specific fertility for sub-Saharan African countries are still lacking. We propose a flexible Bayesian hierarchical model to reconstruct education-specific fertility rates by using the patchy Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) data and the United Nations’ (UN) reliable estimates of total fertility rates (TFR). Our model produces estimates that match the UN TFR to different extents (in other words, estimates of varying levels of consistency with the UN). We present three model specifications: consistent but not identical with the UN, fully-consistent (nearly identical) with the UN, and consistent with the DHS. Further, we provide a full time series of education-specific TFR estimates covering five-year periods between 1980 and 2014 for 36 sub-Saharan African countries. The results show that the DHS-consistent estimates are usually higher than the UN-fully-consistent ones. The differences between the three model estimates vary substantially in size across countries, yielding 1980-2014 fertility trends that differ from each other mostly in level only but in some cases also in direction.

Funding

The data set are part of the BayesEdu Project at Wittgenstein Centre for Demography and Global Human Capital (IIASA, OeAW, University of Vienna) funded from the “Innovation Fund Research, Science and Society” by the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW).

We provide education-specific total fertility rates (ESTFR) from three model specifications: (1) estimated TFR consistent but not identical with the TFR estimated by the UN (“Main model (UN-consistent)”; (2) estimated TFR fully consistent (nearly identical) with the TFR estimated by the UN ( “UN-fully -consistent”, and (3) estimated TFR consistent only with the TFR estimated by the DHS ( “DHS-consistent”).

For education- and age-specific fertility rates that are UN-fully consistent, please see https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.8182960

Variables

Country: Country names

Education: Four education levels, No Education, Primary Education, Secondary Education and Higher Education.

Year: Five-year periods between 1980 and 2015.

ESTFR: Median education-specific total fertility rate estimate

sd: Standard deviation

Upp50: 50% Upper Credible Interval

Lwr50: 50% Lower Credible Interval

Upp80: 80% Upper Credible Interval

Lwr80: 80% Lower Credible Interval

Model: Three model specifications as explained above and in the working paper. DHS-consistent, Main model (UN-consistent) and UN-fully consistent.

List of countries:

Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cote D'Ivoire, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe

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.

Graph and download economic data for Population Ages 0 to 14: All Income Levels for Sub-Saharan Africa (SPPOP0014TOZSSSF) from 1960 to 2024 about Sub-Saharan Africa, 0 to 14 years, income, and population.

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 September of 2025.

Historical dataset showing Sub-Saharan Africa urban population by year from 1960 to 2023.

Graph and download economic data for Population ages 65 and above: All Income Levels for Sub-Saharan Africa (SPPOP65UPTOZSSSF) from 1960 to 2024 about Sub-Saharan Africa, 65-years +, income, and population.

United States - Population, Total: All Income Levels for Sub-Saharan Africa was 1259902353.00000 Persons in January of 2023, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Population, Total: All Income Levels for Sub-Saharan Africa reached a record high of 1259902353.00000 in January of 2023 and a record low of 227233184.00000 in January of 1960. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Population, Total: All Income Levels for Sub-Saharan Africa - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on September of 2025.

The average for 2023 based on 47 countries was 3.6 percent. The highest value was in Mauritius: 12.94 percent and the lowest value was in Zambia: 1.9 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

This data collection consists of aggregate population data by age and sex (for post-stratification population weighting) derived from a UN Population Division file (referred to in the report attached, under the section on post-stratification population weighting) as well as a detailed report which sets out how indicators of deprivation of basic human needs for water, sanitation, shelter, information, education, health and food were developed and used to form summary indicators of severe deprivation and absolute poverty. The report also provides information on how post-stratification population weights were derived to modify the sample weights to make samples more representative of the population as a whole. The data used for this project are from the Demographic and Health Surveys and UNICEF's Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (see Related Resources).This project will use high quality, nationally representative, individual level data from over 140 household surveys conducted between 1990 and 2015 in 40 sub-Saharan African countries, to produce national, sub-regional and regional estimates of absolute poverty for the years 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010 and 2015. Age appropriate and gender relevant indicators of severe deprivation of basic human needs will be operationalised, and an internationally recognised peer reviewed methodology (the ‘Bristol Approach’) used to show how poverty is patterned across Africa, and how it has changed over 20 years. It will show if rural populations have been left behind as urban areas develop, or if with increased rural to urban migration, poverty in Africa has evolved into a primarily urban problem. It will address important issues about gender and geographic disparities in poverty, which until recently have only been assessed in monetary terms. The application of the Bristol Approach, to reflect non-monetary dimensions of poverty, will reveal a more meaningful picture of poverty in Africa and how it has changed over time. Links will be developed with researchers across Africa, including academics at the Universities of Cape Town and the Western Cape.