Catalina Espinosa
Research expert covering society, economy, and politics for Europe and the EU
Demographics of Egypt - statistics & facts
Egypt is the third most populous country in Africa and the most inhabited in the northernmost region of the continent. The country was projected to have almost 104 million individuals living in it as of 2022. The capital city, Cairo, had a population of over 10 million people, while the Giza governorate, which is partly categorized as belonging to the Greater Cairo metropolitan area, and where the pyramids stand, was home to around 9.5 million people.
Fertile Nile river basin
The most northeastern country on the African continent has a total area of 1.01 million square kilometers, with the largest by far being El Wadi ElGidid, also known as New Valley, which encompasses the southwest of the country. The five most inhabited governorates were located around the Nile, while only 10.5 percent of the total area of Cairo was populated. With only a small share of the capital city being lived in, a higher population density can be observed at approximately 5,600 individuals per square kilometer. Kalyoubia follows with around 5,180 inhabitants per square kilometer. This prompted the government to start developing the so-called New Administrative Capital in 2015, as a smart new city further away from the capital.An expansive population pyramid
The largest age group in the nation was between zero and four years old, adding to almost 14.2 million babies. The country had slightly more men than women, with the gap being smaller as the age groups grew older. With the exception of women being more in the age group between 25 to 29 years. Since 2011, life expectancy increased, being higher for women and dropping in the coronavirus pandemic period. As of 2019, the leading cause of death in the country was cardiovascular diseases with a total of 263.87 deaths for every 100,000 deaths.Household size and poverty
Dropping fertility and birth rates imply a smaller number of household members. Egypt's households are forecast to have an average size of 3.59 in 2021. In recent years, divorces boomed in comparison to a decade before. In 2022, 269,800 divorces were registered, compared to 84,000 in 2008. Furthermore, the country had a substantial portion of its population living in poverty. As of 2021, 30.6 million people were living below the Egyptian national poverty line, while poverty rates were on the rise and more prevalent in Upper Egypt.
