Population Growth Rates by Country
Published: May 14, 2009, 2:52 pm
Updated: May 14, 2009, 2:52 pm
This article has been reviewed by the following Topic Editor:
Mark McGinleyThis article provides estimates of the average annual percent change in the population, resulting from a surplus (or deficit) of births over deaths and the balance of migrants entering and leaving a country. The rate may be positive or negative. The growth rate is a factor in determining how great a burden would be imposed on a country by the changing needs of its people for infrastructure (e.g., schools, hospitals, housing, roads), resources (e.g., food, water, electricity), and jobs. Rapid population growth can be seen as threatening by neighboring countries.
Rank | Country | Population growth rate (%) (2009 est.) |
| 1 | United Arab Emirates | 3.69 |
| 2 | Niger | 3.68 |
| 3 | Kuwait | 3.55 |
| 4 | Yemen | 3.45 |
| 5 | Gaza Strip | 3.35 |
| 6 | Mayotte | 3.32 |
| 7 | Burundi | 3.28 |
| 8 | Congo, Democratic Republic of the | 3.21 |
| 9 | Ethiopia | 3.21 |
| 10 | Oman | 3.14 |
| 11 | Burkina Faso | 3.10 |
| 12 | Sao Tome and Principe | 3.09 |
| 13 | Madagascar | 3.00 |
| 14 | Benin | 2.98 |
| 15 | Western Sahara | 2.83 |
| 16 | Somalia | 2.82 |
| 17 | Rwanda | 2.78 |
| 18 | Comoros | 2.77 |
| 19 | Mali | 2.77 |
| 20 | Congo, Republic of the | 2.75 |
| 21 | Togo | 2.71 |
| 22 | Senegal | 2.71 |
| 23 | Equatorial Guinea | 2.70 |
| 24 | Uganda | 2.69 |
| 25 | Kenya | 2.69 |
| 26 | Gambia, The | 2.67 |
| 27 | Liberia | 2.67 |
| 28 | Afghanistan | 2.63 |
| 29 | Eritrea | 2.58 |
| 30 | Guinea | 2.57 |
| 31 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 2.56 |
| 32 | Iraq | 2.51 |
| 33 | Mauritania | 2.40 |
| 34 | Cayman Islands | 2.39 |
| 35 | Solomon Islands | 2.39 |
| 36 | Malawi | 2.39 |
| 37 | Paraguay | 2.36 |
| 38 | Laos | 2.32 |
| 39 | Northern Mariana Islands | 2.29 |
| 40 | Sierra Leone | 2.28 |
| 41 | Anguilla | 2.27 |
| 42 | Jordan | 2.26 |
| 43 | Kiribati | 2.24 |
| 44 | Cameroon | 2.19 |
| 45 | West Bank | 2.18 |
| 46 | Libya | 2.17 |
| 47 | Belize | 2.15 |
| 48 | Sudan | 2.14 |
| 49 | Cote d'Ivoire | 2.13 |
| 50 | Syria | 2.13 |
| 51 | Angola | 2.10 |
| 52 | Marshall Islands | 2.08 |
| 53 | Chad | 2.07 |
| 54 | Papua New Guinea | 2.07 |
| 55 | Guatemala | 2.07 |
| 56 | Tanzania | 2.04 |
| 57 | Timor-Leste | 2.03 |
| 58 | Guinea-Bissau | 2.02 |
| 59 | Nigeria | 2.00 |
| 60 | Macau | 2.00 |
| 61 | Philippines | 1.96 |
| 62 | Honduras | 1.96 |
| 63 | Pakistan | 1.95 |
| 64 | Botswana | 1.94 |
| 65 | Gabon | 1.93 |
| 66 | Djibouti | 1.90 |
| 67 | Ghana | 1.88 |
| 68 | Tajikistan | 1.88 |
| 69 | Saudi Arabia | 1.85 |
| 70 | Haiti | 1.84 |
| 71 | British Virgin Islands | 1.84 |
| 72 | Mozambique | 1.79 |
| 73 | Nicaragua | 1.78 |
| 74 | Bolivia | 1.77 |
| 75 | Cambodia | 1.77 |
| 76 | Brunei | 1.76 |
| 77 | Nauru | 1.75 |
| 78 | Malaysia | 1.72 |
| 79 | Israel | 1.67 |
| 80 | El Salvador | 1.66 |
| 81 | Egypt | 1.64 |
| 82 | Zambia | 1.63 |
| 83 | Tuvalu | 1.62 |
| 84 | India | 1.55 |
| 85 | Zimbabwe | 1.53 |
| 86 | Venezuela | 1.51 |
| 87 | Panama | 1.50 |
| 88 | Ecuador | 1.50 |
| 89 | Mongolia | 1.49 |
| 90 | Central African Republic | 1.49 |
| 91 | Dominican Republic | 1.49 |
| 92 | Tonga | 1.48 |
| 93 | Morocco | 1.48 |
| 94 | Aruba | 1.48 |
| 95 | Vanuatu | 1.40 |
| 96 | Kyrgyzstan | 1.40 |
| 97 | French Polynesia | 1.39 |
| 98 | Fiji | 1.38 |
| 99 | Colombia | 1.38 |
| 100 | Guam | 1.37 |
| 101 | Costa Rica | 1.36 |
| 102 | Samoa | 1.35 |
| 103 | Turkey | 1.31 |
| 104 | Antigua and Barbuda | 1.30 |
| 105 | Bangladesh | 1.29 |
| 106 | Bahrain | 1.29 |
| 107 | Nepal | 1.28 |
| 108 | Bhutan | 1.27 |
| 109 | Peru | 1.23 |
| 110 | American Samoa | 1.22 |
| 111 | Brazil | 1.20 |
| 112 | Algeria | 1.20 |
| 113 | Australia | 1.20 |
| 114 | Luxembourg | 1.17 |
| 115 | World | 1.17 |
| 116 | San Marino | 1.15 |
| 117 | Turkmenistan | 1.14 |
| 118 | Indonesia | 1.14 |
| 119 | New Caledonia | 1.14 |
| 120 | Andorra | 1.14 |
| 121 | Mexico | 1.13 |
| 122 | Ireland | 1.12 |
| 123 | Lebanon | 1.11 |
| 124 | Suriname | 1.10 |
| 125 | Argentina | 1.05 |
| 126 | Seychelles | 1.00 |
| 127 | Singapore | 1.00 |
| 128 | Tunisia | 0.98 |
| 129 | Vietnam | 0.98 |
| 130 | United States | 0.98 |
| 131 | Qatar | 0.96 |
| 132 | Namibia | 0.95 |
| 133 | New Zealand | 0.94 |
| 134 | Uzbekistan | 0.94 |
| 135 | Sri Lanka | 0.90 |
| 136 | Iran | 0.88 |
| 137 | Chile | 0.88 |
| 138 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 0.85 |
| 139 | Canada | 0.82 |
| 140 | Burma | 0.78 |
| 141 | Mauritius | 0.78 |
| 142 | Azerbaijan | 0.76 |
| 143 | Jamaica | 0.76 |
| 144 | Iceland | 0.74 |
| 145 | Netherlands Antilles | 0.73 |
| 146 | Liechtenstein | 0.70 |
| 147 | China | 0.66 |
| 148 | Bermuda | 0.65 |
| 149 | Thailand | 0.62 |
| 150 | Cape Verde | 0.56 |
| 151 | France | 0.55 |
| 152 | Albania | 0.55 |
| 153 | Bahamas, The | 0.54 |
| 154 | Isle of Man | 0.52 |
| 155 | Cyprus | 0.52 |
| 156 | Hong Kong | 0.50 |
| 157 | Grenada | 0.47 |
| 158 | Uruguay | 0.47 |
| 159 | Saint Helena | 0.45 |
| 160 | Palau | 0.43 |
| 161 | Korea, North | 0.42 |
| 162 | Saint Lucia | 0.42 |
| 163 | Netherlands | 0.41 |
| 164 | Malta | 0.40 |
| 165 | Faroe Islands | 0.40 |
| 166 | Monaco | 0.39 |
| 167 | Kazakhstan | 0.39 |
| 168 | Montserrat | 0.39 |
| 169 | Barbados | 0.38 |
| 170 | Wallis and Futuna | 0.35 |
| 171 | Norway | 0.34 |
| 172 | Puerto Rico | 0.34 |
| 173 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 0.34 |
| 174 | South Africa | 0.28 |
| 175 | Denmark | 0.28 |
| 176 | United Kingdom | 0.28 |
| 177 | Switzerland | 0.28 |
| 178 | Portugal | 0.28 |
| 179 | Korea, South | 0.27 |
| 180 | Macedonia | 0.26 |
| 181 | Cuba | 0.23 |
| 182 | Taiwan | 0.23 |
| 183 | Jersey | 0.21 |
| 184 | Guernsey | 0.21 |
| 185 | Dominica | 0.21 |
| 186 | Guyana | 0.18 |
| 187 | Sweden | 0.16 |
| 188 | Slovakia | 0.14 |
| 189 | Greece | 0.13 |
| 190 | Lesotho | 0.12 |
| 191 | Gibraltar | 0.11 |
| 192 | European Union | 0.11 |
| 193 | Finland | 0.10 |
| 194 | Belgium | 0.09 |
| 195 | Saint Pierre and Miquelon | 0.09 |
| 196 | Spain | 0.07 |
| 197 | Greenland | 0.06 |
| 198 | Austria | 0.05 |
| 199 | Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) | 0.01 |
| 200 | Norfolk Island | 0.01 |
| 201 | Holy See (Vatican City) | 0.00 |
| 202 | Cocos (Keeling) Islands | 0.00 |
| 203 | Christmas Island | 0.00 |
| 204 | Pitcairn Islands | 0.00 |
| 205 | Tokelau | -0.01 |
| 206 | Svalbard | -0.02 |
| 207 | United States Virgin Islands | -0.03 |
| 208 | Armenia | -0.03 |
| 209 | Niue | -0.03 |
| 210 | Italy | -0.05 |
| 211 | Poland | -0.05 |
| 212 | Croatia | -0.05 |
| 213 | Germany | -0.05 |
| 214 | Moldova | -0.08 |
| 215 | Czech Republic | -0.09 |
| 216 | Trinidad and Tobago | -0.10 |
| 217 | Slovenia | -0.11 |
| 218 | Romania | -0.15 |
| 219 | Maldives | -0.17 |
| 220 | Japan | -0.19 |
| 221 | Micronesia, Federated States of | -0.24 |
| 222 | Hungary | -0.26 |
| 223 | Lithuania | -0.28 |
| 224 | Georgia | -0.33 |
| 225 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | -0.34 |
| 226 | Belarus | -0.38 |
| 227 | Swaziland | -0.46 |
| 228 | Russia | -0.47 |
| 229 | Serbia | -0.47 |
| 230 | Latvia | -0.61 |
| 231 | Estonia | -0.63 |
| 232 | Ukraine | -0.63 |
| 233 | Bulgaria | -0.79 |
| 234 | Montenegro | -0.85 |
| 235 | Cook Islands | -3.30 |
Further Reading
- CIA World Factbook
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Citation
Peter Saundry (Contributing Author);CIA (Content Source);Mark McGinley (Topic Editor) "Population Growth Rates by Country". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth May 14, 2009; Last revised Date May 14, 2009; Retrieved May 25, 2013 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Population_Growth_Rates_by_Country>
This article provides estimates of the average annual percent change in the population, resulting from a surplus (or deficit) of births over deaths and the balance of migrants entering and leaving a country. The rate may be positive or negative. The growth rate is a factor in determining how great a burden would be imposed on a country by the changing needs of its people for infrastructure (e.g., schools, hospitals, housing, roads), resources (e.g., food, water, electricity), and jobs. Rapid population growth can be seen as threatening by neighboring countries.
Rank | Country | Population growth rate (%) (2009 est.) |
| 1 | United Arab Emirates | 3.69 |
| 2 | Niger | 3.68 |
| 3 | Kuwait | 3.55 |
| 4 | Yemen | 3.45 |
| 5 | Gaza Strip | 3.35 |
| 6 | Mayotte | 3.32 |
| 7 | Burundi | 3.28 |
| 8 | Congo, Democratic Republic of the | 3.21 |
| 9 | Ethiopia | 3.21 |
| 10 | Oman | 3.14 |
| 11 | Burkina Faso | 3.10 |
| 12 | Sao Tome and Principe | 3.09 |
| 13 | Madagascar | 3.00 |
| 14 | Benin | 2.98 |
| 15 | Western Sahara | 2.83 |
| 16 | Somalia | 2.82 |
| 17 | Rwanda | 2.78 |
| 18 | Comoros | 2.77 |
| 19 | Mali | 2.77 |
| 20 | Congo, Republic of the | 2.75 |
| 21 | Togo | 2.71 |
| 22 | Senegal | 2.71 |
| 23 | Equatorial Guinea | 2.70 |
| 24 | Uganda | 2.69 |
| 25 | Kenya | 2.69 |
| 26 | Gambia, The | 2.67 |
| 27 | Liberia | 2.67 |
| 28 | Afghanistan | 2.63 |
| 29 | Eritrea | 2.58 |
| 30 | Guinea | 2.57 |
| 31 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 2.56 |
| 32 | Iraq | 2.51 |
| 33 | Mauritania | 2.40 |
| 34 | Cayman Islands | 2.39 |
| 35 | Solomon Islands | 2.39 |
| 36 | Malawi | 2.39 |
| 37 | Paraguay | 2.36 |
| 38 | Laos | 2.32 |
| 39 | Northern Mariana Islands | 2.29 |
| 40 | Sierra Leone | 2.28 |
| 41 | Anguilla | 2.27 |
| 42 | Jordan | 2.26 |
| 43 | Kiribati | 2.24 |
| 44 | Cameroon | 2.19 |
| 45 | West Bank | 2.18 |
| 46 | Libya | 2.17 |
| 47 | Belize | 2.15 |
| 48 | Sudan | 2.14 |
| 49 | Cote d'Ivoire | 2.13 |
| 50 | Syria | 2.13 |
| 51 | Angola | 2.10 |
| 52 | Marshall Islands | 2.08 |
| 53 | Chad | 2.07 |
| 54 | Papua New Guinea | 2.07 |
| 55 | Guatemala | 2.07 |
| 56 | Tanzania | 2.04 |
| 57 | Timor-Leste | 2.03 |
| 58 | Guinea-Bissau | 2.02 |
| 59 | Nigeria | 2.00 |
| 60 | Macau | 2.00 |
| 61 | Philippines | 1.96 |
| 62 | Honduras | 1.96 |
| 63 | Pakistan | 1.95 |
| 64 | Botswana | 1.94 |
| 65 | Gabon | 1.93 |
| 66 | Djibouti | 1.90 |
| 67 | Ghana | 1.88 |
| 68 | Tajikistan | 1.88 |
| 69 | Saudi Arabia | 1.85 |
| 70 | Haiti | 1.84 |
| 71 | British Virgin Islands | 1.84 |
| 72 | Mozambique | 1.79 |
| 73 | Nicaragua | 1.78 |
| 74 | Bolivia | 1.77 |
| 75 | Cambodia | 1.77 |
| 76 | Brunei | 1.76 |
| 77 | Nauru | 1.75 |
| 78 | Malaysia | 1.72 |
| 79 | Israel | 1.67 |
| 80 | El Salvador | 1.66 |
| 81 | Egypt | 1.64 |
| 82 | Zambia | 1.63 |
| 83 | Tuvalu | 1.62 |
| 84 | India | 1.55 |
| 85 | Zimbabwe | 1.53 |
| 86 | Venezuela | 1.51 |
| 87 | Panama | 1.50 |
| 88 | Ecuador | 1.50 |
| 89 | Mongolia | 1.49 |
| 90 | Central African Republic | 1.49 |
| 91 | Dominican Republic | 1.49 |
| 92 | Tonga | 1.48 |
| 93 | Morocco | 1.48 |
| 94 | Aruba | 1.48 |
| 95 | Vanuatu | 1.40 |
| 96 | Kyrgyzstan | 1.40 |
| 97 | French Polynesia | 1.39 |
| 98 | Fiji | 1.38 |
| 99 | Colombia | 1.38 |
| 100 | Guam | 1.37 |
| 101 | Costa Rica | 1.36 |
| 102 | Samoa | 1.35 |
| 103 | Turkey | 1.31 |
| 104 | Antigua and Barbuda | 1.30 |
| 105 | Bangladesh | 1.29 |
| 106 | Bahrain | 1.29 |
| 107 | Nepal | 1.28 |
| 108 | Bhutan | 1.27 |
| 109 | Peru | 1.23 |
| 110 | American Samoa | 1.22 |
| 111 | Brazil | 1.20 |
| 112 | Algeria | 1.20 |
| 113 | Australia | 1.20 |
| 114 | Luxembourg | 1.17 |
| 115 | World | 1.17 |
| 116 | San Marino | 1.15 |
| 117 | Turkmenistan | 1.14 |
| 118 | Indonesia | 1.14 |
| 119 | New Caledonia | 1.14 |
| 120 | Andorra | 1.14 |
| 121 | Mexico | 1.13 |
| 122 | Ireland | 1.12 |
| 123 | Lebanon | 1.11 |
| 124 | Suriname | 1.10 |
| 125 | Argentina | 1.05 |
| 126 | Seychelles | 1.00 |
| 127 | Singapore | 1.00 |
| 128 | Tunisia | 0.98 |
| 129 | Vietnam | 0.98 |
| 130 | United States | 0.98 |
| 131 | Qatar | 0.96 |
| 132 | Namibia | 0.95 |
| 133 | New Zealand | 0.94 |
| 134 | Uzbekistan | 0.94 |
| 135 | Sri Lanka | 0.90 |
| 136 | Iran | 0.88 |
| 137 | Chile | 0.88 |
| 138 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 0.85 |
| 139 | Canada | 0.82 |
| 140 | Burma | 0.78 |
| 141 | Mauritius | 0.78 |
| 142 | Azerbaijan | 0.76 |
| 143 | Jamaica | 0.76 |
| 144 | Iceland | 0.74 |
| 145 | Netherlands Antilles | 0.73 |
| 146 | Liechtenstein | 0.70 |
| 147 | China | 0.66 |
| 148 | Bermuda | 0.65 |
| 149 | Thailand | 0.62 |
| 150 | Cape Verde | 0.56 |
| 151 | France | 0.55 |
| 152 | Albania | 0.55 |
| 153 | Bahamas, The | 0.54 |
| 154 | Isle of Man | 0.52 |
| 155 | Cyprus | 0.52 |
| 156 | Hong Kong | 0.50 |
| 157 | Grenada | 0.47 |
| 158 | Uruguay | 0.47 |
| 159 | Saint Helena | 0.45 |
| 160 | Palau | 0.43 |
| 161 | Korea, North | 0.42 |
| 162 | Saint Lucia | 0.42 |
| 163 | Netherlands | 0.41 |
| 164 | Malta | 0.40 |
| 165 | Faroe Islands | 0.40 |
| 166 | Monaco | 0.39 |
| 167 | Kazakhstan | 0.39 |
| 168 | Montserrat | 0.39 |
| 169 | Barbados | 0.38 |
| 170 | Wallis and Futuna | 0.35 |
| 171 | Norway | 0.34 |
| 172 | Puerto Rico | 0.34 |
| 173 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 0.34 |
| 174 | South Africa | 0.28 |
| 175 | Denmark | 0.28 |
| 176 | United Kingdom | 0.28 |
| 177 | Switzerland | 0.28 |
| 178 | Portugal | 0.28 |
| 179 | Korea, South | 0.27 |
| 180 | Macedonia | 0.26 |
| 181 | Cuba | 0.23 |
| 182 | Taiwan | 0.23 |
| 183 | Jersey | 0.21 |
| 184 | Guernsey | 0.21 |
| 185 | Dominica | 0.21 |
| 186 | Guyana | 0.18 |
| 187 | Sweden | 0.16 |
| 188 | Slovakia | 0.14 |
| 189 | Greece | 0.13 |
| 190 | Lesotho | 0.12 |
| 191 | Gibraltar | 0.11 |
| 192 | European Union | 0.11 |
| 193 | Finland | 0.10 |
| 194 | Belgium | 0.09 |
| 195 | Saint Pierre and Miquelon | 0.09 |
| 196 | Spain | 0.07 |
| 197 | Greenland | 0.06 |
| 198 | Austria | 0.05 |
| 199 | Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) | 0.01 |
| 200 | Norfolk Island | 0.01 |
| 201 | Holy See (Vatican City) | 0.00 |
| 202 | Cocos (Keeling) Islands | 0.00 |
| 203 | Christmas Island | 0.00 |
| 204 | Pitcairn Islands | 0.00 |
| 205 | Tokelau | -0.01 |
| 206 | Svalbard | -0.02 |
| 207 | United States Virgin Islands | -0.03 |
| 208 | Armenia | -0.03 |
| 209 | Niue | -0.03 |
| 210 | Italy | -0.05 |
| 211 | Poland | -0.05 |
| 212 | Croatia | -0.05 |
| 213 | Germany | -0.05 |
| 214 | Moldova | -0.08 |
| 215 | Czech Republic | -0.09 |
| 216 | Trinidad and Tobago | -0.10 |
| 217 | Slovenia | -0.11 |
| 218 | Romania | -0.15 |
| 219 | Maldives | -0.17 |
| 220 | Japan | -0.19 |
| 221 | Micronesia, Federated States of | -0.24 |
| 222 | Hungary | -0.26 |
| 223 | Lithuania | -0.28 |
| 224 | Georgia | -0.33 |
| 225 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | -0.34 |
| 226 | Belarus | -0.38 |
| 227 | Swaziland | -0.46 |
| 228 | Russia | -0.47 |
| 229 | Serbia | -0.47 |
| 230 | Latvia | -0.61 |
| 231 | Estonia | -0.63 |
| 232 | Ukraine | -0.63 |
| 233 | Bulgaria | -0.79 |
| 234 | Montenegro | -0.85 |
| 235 | Cook Islands | -3.30 |
Further Reading
- CIA World Factbook
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