Egypt’s population growth rate hits 50-year low

REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany

Egypt, the most populous Arab nation in the world, has seen its population growth rate decline by 1.4 percent in 2023, reaching its lowest level in half a century.

The rate fell by 46 percent from 2017 to 2023, Ahram Online reported, quoting planning and economic development minister Hala El-Said.

The birth rate reached two million last year, down 15 percent from 2018 and seven percent from 2022, the minister said, citing a report issued by the National Project for Egyptian Family Development.

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As of January 1, 2024, the population reached nearly 106 million, up from 104 million in 2022 and 103 million in 2021, the official statistics department data showed.

Egypt is the 14th most populous country globally and the third in Africa. The statistics department has projected the population to reach 192 million by 2052 if current growth rates persist, the report said.

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The country’s population grew at just under 3 percent in 1984-85 before gradually falling to 2 percent in 2006, Reuters reported, citing World Bank data. However, it rose to 2.3 percent in 2014 before declining to 1.6 percent in 2022.

Nearly 60 percent of citizens are estimated to live below or near the poverty line in Egypt, the news agency said.

Egypt launched a two-child population strategy in 2019, to provide financial assistance to those who succeeded in family planning.