Population density per pixel at 100 metre resolution. WorldPop provides estimates of numbers of people residing in each 100x100m grid cell for every low and middle income country. Through ingegrating cencus, survey, satellite and GIS datasets in a flexible machine-learning framework, high resolution maps of population counts and densities for 2000-2020 are produced, along with accompanying metadata.

DATASET: Alpha version 2010 and 2015 estimates of numbers of people per grid square, with national totals adjusted to match UN population division estimates (http://esa.un.org/wpp/) and remaining unadjusted.

REGION: Africa

SPATIAL RESOLUTION: 0.000833333 decimal degrees (approx 100m at the equator)

PROJECTION: Geographic, WGS84

UNITS: Estimated persons per grid square

MAPPING APPROACH: Land cover based, as described in: Linard, C., Gilbert, M., Snow, R.W., Noor, A.M. and Tatem, A.J., 2012, Population distribution, settlement patterns and accessibility across Africa in 2010, PLoS ONE, 7(2): e31743.

FORMAT: Geotiff (zipped using 7-zip (open access tool): www.7-zip.org)

FILENAMES: Example - AGO10adjv4.tif = Angola (AGO) population count map for 2010 (10) adjusted to match UN national estimates (adj), version 4 (v4). Population maps are updated to new versions when improved census or other input data become available.

Sudan data available from WorldPop here.

Source: Map created by EPI (Elephant Protection Initiative) with data from CIESIN, Columbia University, USA. The map is published on UNEP's South Sudan: First State of Environment and Outlook Report 2018, using data from WCS. The UNEP's report could be found here

The map shows the population distribution in South Sudan. Jonglei is the most populous area, with 16 per cent of the total population, and Western Bahr el Ghazal is the least populous area with only 4 per cent of the total. The highest population densities are along the Nile River and their tributaries.

These 28 tiff files represent 2015 population estimates. However, please note that many of the country-level files include 2020 population estimates including: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Cabo Verde, Cote d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Eritrea, Eswatini, The Gambia, Ghana, Lesotho, Liberia, Mozambique, Namibia, Sao Tome & Principe, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Togo, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. South Sudan, Sudan, Somalia and Ethiopia are intentionally omitted from this dataset. However, a country-level dataset for Ethiopia can be found at https://data.humdata.org/dataset/ethiopia-high-resolution-population-density-maps-demographic-estimates.

DATASET: Version 4.0 2010 estimates of numbers of people per grid square for 2010, 2015, with national totals adjusted to match UN population division estimates (http://esa.un.org/wpp/), and remaining unadjusted. REGION: Africa SPATIAL RESOLUTION: 0.000833333 decimal degrees (approx 100m at the equator) PROJECTION: Geographic, WGS84 UNITS: Estimated persons per grid square MAPPING APPROACH: Land cover based, as described in: Linard, C., Gilbert, M., Snow, R.W., Noor, A.M. and Tatem, A.J., 2012, Population distribution, settlement patterns and accessibility across Africa in 2010, PLoS ONE, 7(2): e31743. FORMAT: Geotiff (zipped using 7-zip (open access tool): www.7-zip.org) FILENAMES: WorldPop naming convention applied; example SSD_ppp_2010_adj_v4.tif = South Sudan population per pixel (ppp) map for 2010 adjusted to match UN national estimates (adj), dataset version 4 (v4). DATE OF PRODUCTION: Jan 2013 (Updated July 2018) CITATION: WorldPop. 2013. South Sudan 100m Population, Version 4. University of Southampton. DOI: 10.5258/SOTON/WP00642.

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 in South Sudan. 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.

The raster dataset consists of a 500m score grid for sugarcane storage location, produced under the scope of FAO’s Hand-in-Hand Initiative, Geographical Information Systems - Multicriteria Decision Analysis for value chain infrastructure location. The location score is achieved by processing sub-model outputs that characterize logistical factors for selected crop warehouse locations: • Supply: Crop. • Demand: Human population density, Major cities population (national and bordering countries). • Infrastructure/accessibility: main transportation infrastructure. It consists of an arithmetic weighted sum of normalized grids (0 to 100): ("Crop Production" * 0.4) + ("Human Population Density" * 0.2) + (“Major Cities Accessibility” * 0.1) + (”Regional Cities Accessibility” * 0.1) + (“Port Accessibility” * 0.1) + (”Asset Wealth” * 0.1)

The raster dataset consists of a 500m score grid for the groundnut storage location, produced under the scope of FAO’s Hand-in-Hand Initiative, Geographical Information Systems - Multicriteria Decision Analysis for value chain infrastructure location. The location score is achieved by processing sub-model outputs that characterize logistical factors for selected crop warehouse locations: • Supply: Crop. • Demand: Human population density, Major cities population (national and bordering countries). • Infrastructure/accessibility: main transportation infrastructure. It consists of an arithmetic weighted sum of normalized grids (0 to 100): ("Crop Production" * 0.4) + ("Human Population Density" * 0.2) + (“Major Cities Accessibility” * 0.1) + (”Regional Cities Accessibility” * 0.1) + (“Port Accessibility” * 0.1) + (”Asset Wealth” * 0.1)

The 500 m raster dataset represents selected top location score areas filtered by exclusive criteria: access to finance, distance to major roads, access to IT, and distance to urban areas. The layer was produced under the scope of FAO’s Hand-in-Hand Initiative, Geographical Information Systems - Multicriteria Decision Analysis for value chain infrastructure location.

The location score is achieved by processing sub-model outputs characterizing logistical factors dairy processing facilities siting: Supply, demand, Infrastructure/accessibility. The top score is selected/clipped using the exclusive criteria.

Access to finance, distance to roads, and urban areas are defined using a linear distance threshold: • Banks - approx. 10km buffer radius. • Major roads - approx. 2km buffer radius. Access to IT is characterized by applying the mobile broadband coverage map.

Data publication: 2021-10-15

Contact points:

Metadata Contact: FAO-Data

Resource Contact: Justeen De Ocampo

Data lineage:

Major data sources, FAO GIS platform Hand-in-Hand and OpenStreetMap (open data) including the following datasets: 1. Human Population Density 2020 – WorldPop2020 - Estimated total number of people per grid-cell 1km. 2. Mapspam Production – IFPRI's Spatial Production Allocation Model (SPAM) estimates of crop distribution within disaggregated units. 3. GLW Gridded Livestock of the World - Gridded Livestock of the World (GLW 3 and GLW 2) 4. Global Livestock Production Systems v.5 2011. 5. OpenStreetMap. 6. Mobile Broadband Coverage produced based on: Coverage Data © Collins Bartholomew and GSMA 2020.

Resource constraints:

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC BY-NC- SA 3.0 IGO)

Online resources:

Zipped raster TIF file for dairy processing (UHT/powder) final location (Sudan - ~ 500m)

The raster dataset consists of a 500m score grid for sorghum storage location, produced under the scope of FAO’s Hand-in-Hand Initiative, Geographical Information Systems - Multicriteria Decision Analysis for value chain infrastructure location. The location score is achieved by processing sub-model outputs that characterize logistical factors for selected crop warehouse locations: • Supply: Crop. • Demand: Human population density, Major cities population (national and bordering countries). • Infrastructure/accessibility: main transportation infrastructure. It consists of an arithmetic weighted sum of normalized grids (0 to 100): ("Crop Production" * 0.4) + ("Human Population Density" * 0.2) + (“Major Cities Accessibility” * 0.1) + (”Regional Cities Accessibility” * 0.1) + (“Port Accessibility” * 0.1) + (”Asset Wealth” * 0.1)

Nigeria has the largest population in Africa. As of 2025, the country counted over 237.5 million individuals, whereas Ethiopia, which ranked second, has around 135.5 million inhabitants. Egypt registered the largest population in North Africa, reaching nearly 118.4 million people. In terms of inhabitants per square kilometer, Nigeria only ranked seventh, while Mauritius had the highest population density on the whole African continent in 2023. The fastest-growing world region Africa is the second most populous continent in the world, after Asia. Nevertheless, Africa records the highest growth rate worldwide, with figures rising by over two percent every year. In some countries, such as Chad, South Sudan, Somalia, and the Central African Republic, the population increase peaks at over 3.4 percent. With so many births, Africa is also the youngest continent in the world. However, this coincides with a low life expectancy. African cities on the rise The last decades have seen high urbanization rates in Asia, mainly in China and India. African cities are also growing at large rates. Indeed, the continent has three megacities and is expected to add four more by 2050. Furthermore, Africa's fastest-growing cities are forecast to be Bujumbura, in Burundi, and Zinder, Nigeria, by 2035.

The 500 m raster dataset represents selected top location score areas filtered by exclusive criteria: access to finance, distance to major roads, access to IT, and distance to urban areas. The layer was produced under the scope of FAO’s Hand-in-Hand Initiative, Geographical Information Systems - Multicriteria Decision Analysis for value chain infrastructure location.

The location score is achieved by processing sub-model outputs characterizing logistical factors dairy processing facilities siting: Supply, demand, Infrastructure/accessibility. The top score is selected/clipped using the exclusive criteria.

Access to finance, distance to roads, and urban areas are defined using a linear distance threshold: • Banks - approx. 10km buffer radius. • Major roads - approx. 2km buffer radius. Access to IT is characterized by applying the mobile broadband coverage map.

Data publication: 2021-10-15

Contact points:

Metadata Contact: FAO-Data

Resource Contact: Justeen De Ocampo

Data lineage:

Major data sources, FAO GIS platform Hand-in-Hand and OpenStreetMap (open data) including the following datasets: 1. Human Population Density 2020 – WorldPop2020 - Estimated total number of people per grid-cell 1km. 2. Mapspam Production – IFPRI's Spatial Production Allocation Model (SPAM) estimates of crop distribution within disaggregated units. 3. GLW Gridded Livestock of the World - Gridded Livestock of the World (GLW 3 and GLW 2) 4. Global Livestock Production Systems v.5 2011. 5. OpenStreetMap. 6. Mobile Broadband Coverage produced based on: Coverage Data © Collins Bartholomew and GSMA 2020.

Resource constraints:

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC BY-NC- SA 3.0 IGO)

Online resources:

Zipped raster TIF file for dairy processing (UHT/powder) final location (Sudan - ~ 500m)

The raster dataset consists of a 500m score grid for wheat storage location, produced under the scope of FAO’s Hand-in-Hand Initiative, Geographical Information Systems - Multicriteria Decision Analysis for value chain infrastructure location. The location score is achieved by processing sub-model outputs that characterize logistical factors for selected crop warehouse locations: • Supply: Crop. • Demand: Human population density, Major cities population (national and bordering countries). • Infrastructure/accessibility: main transportation infrastructure. It consists of an arithmetic weighted sum of normalized grids (0 to 100): ("Crop Production" * 0.4) + ("Human Population Density" * 0.2) + (“Major Cities Accessibility” * 0.1) + (”Regional Cities Accessibility” * 0.1) + (“Port Accessibility” * 0.1) + (”Asset Wealth” * 0.1)

The raster dataset represents top location score areas suitable for sorghum storage, filtered by exclusive criteria: access to finance, distance to major roads, and access to IT (mobile broadband connection).

Access to finance and roads are defined using a linear distance threshold: • Banks - approx. 10km buffer radius. • Major roads - approx. 2km buffer radius. Access to IT is characterized by applying the mobile broadband coverage map.

The location score is achieved by processing sub-model outputs characterizing logistical factors for crop warehouse siting: Supply, demand, Infrastructure/accessibility. The location score from 0 to 100 is then obtained through a simple arithmetic weighted sum of the normalized/scaled grids.

This 500m resolution raster dataset is part of FAO’s Hand-in-Hand Initiative, Geographical Information Systems - Multicriteria Decision Analysis (GIS-MCDA) aimed at the identification of value chain infrastructure sites (optimal location).

Data publication: 2021-10-15

Contact points:

Metadata Contact: FAO-Data

Resource Contact: Justeen De Ocampo

Data lineage:

Major data sources, FAO GIS platform Hand-in-Hand and OpenStreetMap (open data) including the following datasets: 1. Human Population Density 2020 – WorldPop2020 - Estimated total number of people per grid-cell 1km. 2. Mapspam Production – IFPRI's Spatial Production Allocation Model (SPAM) estimates of crop distribution within disaggregated units. 3. OpenStreetMap. 4. Altas AI - Asset Wealth Index 2020. 5. Mobile Broadband Coverage produced based on: Coverage Data © Collins Bartholomew and GSMA 2020.

Resource constraints:

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC BY-NC- SA 3.0 IGO)

Online resources:

Zipped TIF raster file for sorghum final location (Sudan - ~ 500 m)

The raster dataset consists of a 500 m score grid for dairy processing industry facilities siting, produced under the scope of FAO’s Hand-in-Hand Initiative, Geographical Information Systems - Multicriteria Decision Analysis for value chain infrastructure location. The analysis is based on sheep dairy production intensification potential, defined using crop production, livestock production systems, and goat distribution. The score is achieved by processing sub-model outputs that characterize logistical factors: 1. Supply - Feed, livestock production systems, dairy distribution. 2. Demand - Human population density, large cities, urban areas. 3. Infrastructure - Transportation network (accessibility) It consists of an arithmetic weighted sum of normalized grids (0 to 100): (”Dairy Intensification” * 0.4) + ("Crop Production" * 0.3) + (“Major Cities Accessibility” * 0.2) + (“Population Density” * 0.1)