Population:
11,466,756
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 78
Nationality:
noun: Burundian(s)
adjective: Burundian
Ethnic groups:
Hutu 85%, Tutsi 14%, Twa (Pygmy) 1%, Europeans 3,000, South Asians 2,000
Languages:
Kirundi 29.7% (official), Kirundi and other language 9.1%, French (official); French and other language 0.3%, Swahili; Swahili and other language 0.2% (along Lake Tanganyika and in the Bujumbura area), English (official); English and other language 0.06%, more than 2 languages 3.7%, unspecified 56.9%
note: data represent language read and written by people 10 years of age or older; spoken Kirundi is nearly universal (2008 est.)
Religions:
Roman Catholic 62.1%, Protestant 23.9% (includes Adventist 2.3% and other Protestant 21.6%), Muslim 2.5%, other 3.6%, unspecified 7.9% (2008 est.)
Demographic profile:
Burundi is a densely populated country with a high population growth rate, factors that combined with land scarcity and poverty place a large share of its population at risk of food insecurity. About 90% of the population relies on subsistence agriculture. Subdivision of land to sons, and redistribution to returning refugees, results in smaller, overworked, and less productive plots. Food shortages, poverty, and a lack of clean water contribute to a 60% chronic malnutrition rate among children. A lack of reproductive health services has prevented a significant reduction in Burundi’s maternal mortality and fertility rates, which are both among the world’s highest. With two-thirds of its population under the age of 25 and a birth rate of about 6 children per woman, Burundi’s population will continue to expand rapidly for decades to come, putting additional strain on a poor country.
Historically, migration flows into and out of Burundi have consisted overwhelmingly of refugees from violent conflicts. In the last decade, more than a half million Burundian refugees returned home from neighboring countries, mainly Tanzania. Reintegrating the returnees has been problematic due to their prolonged time in exile, land scarcity, poor infrastructure, poverty, and unemployment. Repatriates and existing residents (including internally displaced persons) compete for limited land and other resources. To further complicate matters, international aid organizations reduced their assistance because they no longer classified Burundi as a post-conflict country. Conditions have deteriorated since renewed violence erupted in April 2015, causing another outpouring of refugees. In addition to refugee out-migration, Burundi has hosted thousands of refugees from neighboring countries, mostly from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and lesser numbers from Rwanda.
Age structure:
0-14 years: 45.57% (male 2,628,767/female 2,596,719)
15-24 years: 19.15% (male 1,095,213/female 1,100,314)
25-54 years: 28.74% (male 1,643,319/female 1,651,679)
55-64 years: 3.92% (male 212,074/female 237,324)
65 years and over: 2.63% (male 129,482/female 171,865) (2017 est.)
population pyramid:
Africa ::BURUNDI
Population Pyramid
A population pyramid illustrates the age and sex structure of a country's population and may provide insights about political and social stability, as well as economic development. The population is distributed along the horizontal axis, with males shown on the left and females on the right. The male and female populations are broken down into 5-year age groups represented as horizontal bars along the vertical axis, with the youngest age groups at the bottom and the oldest at the top. The shape of the population pyramid gradually evolves over time based on fertility, mortality, and international migration trends.
For additional information, please see the entry for Population pyramid on the Definitions and Notes page under the References tab.
Dependency ratios:
total dependency ratio: 89.6
youth dependency ratio: 84.8
elderly dependency ratio: 4.7
potential support ratio: 21.1 (2015 est.)
Median age:
total: 17 years
male: 16.8 years
female: 17.3 years (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 223
Population growth rate:
3.25% (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
Birth rate:
41.3 births/1,000 population (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 6
Death rate:
8.8 deaths/1,000 population (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 69
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 77
Population distribution:
one of Africa's most densely populated countries; concentrations tend to be in the north and along the northern shore of Lake Tanganyika in the west; most people live on farms near areas of fertile volcanic soil
Urbanization:
urban population: 12.7% of total population (2017)
rate of urbanization: 5.48% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)
Major urban areas - population:
BUJUMBURA (capital) 751,000 (2015)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 1 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.89 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2017 est.)
Mother's mean age at first birth:
21.3 years
note: median age at first birth among women 25-29 (2010 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio:
712 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 8
Infant mortality rate:
total: 58.8 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 65.3 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 52.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 19
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 60.9 years
male: 59.2 years
female: 62.7 years (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 202
Total fertility rate:
5.99 children born/woman (2017 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
Contraceptive prevalence rate:
31.7% (2012)
Health expenditures:
7.5% of GDP (2014)
country comparison to the world: 63
Hospital bed density:
0.8 beds/1,000 population (2014)
Drinking water source:
improved:
urban: 91.1% of population
rural: 73.8% of population
total: 75.9% of population
unimproved:
urban: 8.9% of population
rural: 26.2% of population
total: 24.1% of population (2015 est.)
Sanitation facility access:
improved:
urban: 43.8% of population
rural: 48.6% of population
total: 48% of population
unimproved:
urban: 56.2% of population
rural: 51.4% of population
total: 52% of population (2015 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
1.1% (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 42
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
84,000 (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 46
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
2,900 (2016 est.)
country comparison to the world: 42
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: malaria and dengue fever
water contact disease: schistosomiasis
animal contact disease: rabies (2016)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate:
5.4% (2016)
country comparison to the world: 178
Children under the age of 5 years underweight:
29.1% (2010)
country comparison to the world: 16
Education expenditures:
5.4% of GDP (2013)
country comparison to the world: 50
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 85.6%
male: 88.2%
female: 83.1% (2015 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 11 years
male: 11 years
female: 10 years (2013)