Demographics of Zambia

Demographic features of the population of Zambia include population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and others aspects of the population.

Ethnic groups
Zambia is one of the most highly urbanised countries in sub-Saharan Africa with 44% of the population concentrated in a few urban areas along the major transport corridors, while rural areas are sparsely populated. Zambia's population comprises more than 72 Bantu-speaking ethnic groups. Some ethnic groups are small, and only two have enough people to constitute at least 10% of the population. The majority of Zambians are subsistence farmers, but the country is also fairly urbanised, with 42% of the population being city residents. The predominant religion is a blend of traditional beliefs and Christianity.

Immigrants, mostly British or South African, as well as some white Zambian citizens (about 40,000), live mainly in Lusaka and in the Copperbelt in northern Zambia, where they are either employed in mines, financial and related activities or retired. Zambia also has a small but economically important Asian population, most of whom are Indians or Chinese.

2010 census
Source:

Population
According to the total population of Zambia is  in, compared to only 2,340,000 in 1950. The proportion of children below the age of 15 in 2010 was 46.4%, 50.6% was between 15 and 65 years of age, while 3.1% was 65 years or older.

Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.VII.2020) (Data based on the 2010 Population Census.):

Vital statistics
Registration of vital events is in Zambia not complete. The website Our World in Data prepared the following estimates based on statistics from the Population Department of the United Nations.

Fertility and births
Total Fertility Rate (TFR) (Wanted TFR) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR) :

Fertility data as of 2013–2014 (DHS Program):

Fertility rate by religion
At national level, the TFR was highest among women with no religious affiliation at 6.5. Among the women with religious affiliation Protestants had the highest TFR of 6.0, followed by Muslims with 5.9 and Catholics with 5.7.

Other demographic statistics
The following demographic statistics of Zambia in 2022 are from the World Population Review.


 * One birth every 47 seconds
 * One death every 4 minutes
 * One net migrant every 65 minutes
 * Net gain of one person every 57 seconds

The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.

Population

 * 19,642,123 (2022 est.)
 * 16,445,079 (July 2018 est.)

Age structure

 * 0-14 years: 45.74% (male 4,005,134/female 3,964,969)
 * 15-24 years: 20.03% (male 1,744,843/female 1,746,561)
 * 25-54 years: 28.96% (male 2,539,697/female 2,506,724)
 * 55-64 years: 3.01% (male 242,993/female 280,804)
 * 65 years and over: 2.27% (male 173,582/female 221,316) (2020 est.)


 * 0-14 years: 45.95% (male 3,796,548 /female 3,759,624)
 * 15-24 years: 20% (male 1,643,364 /female 1,645,713)
 * 25-54 years: 28.79% (male 2,384,765 /female 2,349,877)
 * 55-64 years: 2.95% (male 225,586 /female 260,252)
 * 65 years and over: 2.31% (male 166,224 /female 213,126) (2018 est.)

Religions

 * Protestant 75.3%
 * Roman Catholic 20.2%
 * other 2.7% (includes Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, and Baha'i)
 * none 1.8%

(2010 est.)

Birth rate

 * 34.86 births/1,000 population (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 17th
 * 41.1 births/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 6th

Death rate

 * 6.12 deaths/1,000 population (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 152nd
 * 12 deaths/1,000 population (2018 est.)

Population growth rate

 * 2.9% (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 12th
 * 2.91% (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 10th

Mother's mean age at first birth

 * 19.2 years (2018 est.)
 * note: median age at first birth among women 20-49

Net migration rate

 * 0.24 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2022 est.) Country comparison to the world: 77th

Contraceptive prevalence rate

 * 49.6% (2018)
 * 49% (2013/14)

Dependency ratios

 * total dependency ratio: 91.9 (2015 est.)
 * youth dependency ratio: 87.1 (2015 est.)
 * elderly dependency ratio: 4.8 (2015 est.)
 * potential support ratio: 20.8 (2015 est.)

Population distribution

 * one of the highest levels of urbanization in Africa; high density in the central area, particularly around the cities of Lusaka, Ndola, Kitwe, and Mufulira

Urbanization

 * urban population: 45.8% of total population (2022)
 * rate of urbanization: 4.15% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)


 * urban population: 43.5% of total population (2018)
 * rate of urbanization: 4.23% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

Major infectious diseases

 * degree of risk: very high (2020)
 * food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
 * vectorborne diseases: malaria and dengue fever
 * water contact diseases: schistosomiasis
 * animal contact diseases: rabies

Sex ratio

 * at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
 * under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
 * 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
 * 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
 * total population: 1 male(s)/female (2010 est.)

Education expenditures

 * 4.5% of GDP (2019) Country comparison to the world: 85th

Nationality

 * noun:Zambian(s)
 * adjective:Zambian

Demographic profile
Zambia's youthful population consists primarily of Bantu-speaking people representing nearly 70 different ethnicities. Zambia's high fertility rate continues to drive rapid population growth, averaging almost 3 percent annually between 2000 and 2010. The country's total fertility rate has fallen by less than 1.5 children per woman during the last 30 years and still averages among the world's highest, almost 6 children per woman, largely because of the country's lack of access to family planning services, education for girls, and employment for women. Zambia also exhibits wide fertility disparities based on rural or urban location, education, and income. Poor, uneducated women from rural areas are more likely to marry young, to give birth early, and to have more children, viewing children as a sign of prestige and recognizing that not all of their children will live to adulthood.

Languages

 * Bemba 33.4%, Nyanja 14.7%, Tonga 11.4%, Lozi 5.5%, Chewa 4.5%, Nsenga 2.9%, Tumbuka 2.5%, Lunda (North Western) 1.9%, Kaonde 1.8%, Lala 1.8%, Lamba 1.8%, English (official) 1.7%, Luvale 1.5%, Mambwe 1.3%, Namwanga 1.2%, Lenje 1.1%, Bisa 1%, other 9.7%, unspecified 0.2% (2010 est.)
 * note: Zambia is said to have over 70 languages, although many of these may be considered dialects; all of Zambia's major languages are members of the Bantu family

Literacy
definition: age 15 and over can read and write