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Cote d'Ivoire vs. Ghana

Demographics

Cote d'IvoireGhana
Population28,088,455 (July 2021 est.)

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
32,372,889 (July 2021 est.)

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
Age structure0-14 years: 38.53% (male 5,311,971/female 5,276,219)

15-24 years: 20.21% (male 2,774,374/female 2,779,012)

25-54 years: 34.88% (male 4,866,957/female 4,719,286)

55-64 years: 3.53% (male 494,000/female 476,060)

65 years and over: 2.85% (male 349,822/female 433,385) (2020 est.)
0-14 years: 37.44% (male 5,524,932/female 5,460,943)

15-24 years: 18.64% (male 2,717,481/female 2,752,601)

25-54 years: 34.27% (male 4,875,985/female 5,177,959)

55-64 years: 5.21% (male 743,757/female 784,517)

65 years and over: 4.44% (male 598,387/female 703,686) (2020 est.)
Median agetotal: 20.3 years

male: 20.3 years

female: 20.3 years (2020 est.)
total: 21.4 years

male: 21 years

female: 21.9 years (2020 est.)
Population growth rate2.21% (2021 est.)2.26% (2021 est.)
Birth rate28.67 births/1,000 population (2021 est.)29.08 births/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Death rate7.75 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.)6.3 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Net migration rate1.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)-0.17 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Sex ratioat birth: 1.03 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 1 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 1.03 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female

total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2020 est.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.01 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 0.99 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 0.94 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female

total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2020 est.)
Infant mortality ratetotal: 57.36 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 64.83 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 49.66 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)
total: 33.33 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 36.86 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 29.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)
Life expectancy at birthtotal population: 61.8 years

male: 59.62 years

female: 64.05 years (2021 est.)
total population: 69.01 years

male: 67.33 years

female: 70.74 years (2021 est.)
Total fertility rate3.6 children born/woman (2021 est.)3.71 children born/woman (2021 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate2.1% (2020 est.)1.7% (2020 est.)
Nationalitynoun: Ivoirian(s)

adjective: Ivoirian
noun: Ghanaian(s)

adjective: Ghanaian
Ethnic groupsAkan 28.9%, Voltaique or Gur 16.1%, Northern Mande 14.5%, Kru 8.5%, Southern Mande 6.9%, unspecified 0.9%, non-Ivoirian 24.2% (2014 est.)Akan 47.5%, Mole-Dagbon 16.6%, Ewe 13.9%, Ga-Dangme 7.4%, Gurma 5.7%, Guan 3.7%, Grusi 2.5%, Mande 1.1%, other 1.4% (2010 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS380,000 (2020 est.)350,000 (2020 est.)
ReligionsMuslim 42.9%, Catholic 17.2%, Evangelical 11.8%, Methodist 1.7%, other Christian 3.2%, animist 3.6%, other religion 0.5%, none 19.1% (2014 est.)

note: the majority of foreign migrant workers are Muslim (72.7%) and Christian (17.7%)
Christian 71.2% (Pentecostal/Charismatic 28.3%, Protestant 18.4%, Catholic 13.1%, other 11.4%), Muslim 17.6%, traditional 5.2%, other 0.8%, none 5.2% (2010 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths13,000 (2020 est.)13,000 (2020 est.)
LanguagesFrench (official), 60 native dialects of which Dioula is the most widely spoken

major-language sample(s):
The World Factbook, une source indispensable d'informations de base. (French)

The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Asante 16%, Ewe 14%, Fante 11.6%, Boron (Brong) 4.9%, Dagomba 4.4%, Dangme 4.2%, Dagarte (Dagaba) 3.9%, Kokomba 3.5%, Akyem 3.2%, Ga 3.1%, other 31.2% (2010 est.)

note: English is the official language
Literacydefinition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 47.2%

male: 53.7%

female: 40.5% (2018)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 76.6%

male: 82%

female: 71.4% (2015)
Major infectious diseasesdegree of risk: very high (2020)

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases: malaria, dengue fever, and yellow fever

water contact diseases: schistosomiasis

animal contact diseases: rabies

respiratory diseases: meningococcal meningitis
degree of risk: very high (2020)

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases: malaria, dengue fever, and yellow fever

water contact diseases: schistosomiasis

animal contact diseases: rabies

respiratory diseases: meningococcal meningitis
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)total: 11 years

male: 10 years

female: 9 years (2017)
total: 12 years

male: 12 years

female: 12 years (2019)
Education expenditures3.3% of GDP (2018)4% of GDP (2018)
Urbanizationurban population: 52.2% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 3.38% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
urban population: 58% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 3.06% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Drinking water sourceimproved: urban: 90.4% of population

rural: 67.8% of population

total: 79.2% of population

unimproved: urban: 9.6% of population

rural: 32.2% of population

total: 20.8% of population (2017 est.)
improved: urban: 97.4% of population

rural: 80.6% of population

total: 89.9% of population

unimproved: urban: 2.6% of population

rural: 19.4% of population

total: 10.1% of population (2017 est.)
Sanitation facility accessimproved: urban: 75.9% of population

rural: 32.7% of population

total: 54.5% of population

unimproved: urban: 24.1% of population

rural: 67.3% of population

total: 45.5% of population (2017 est.)
improved: urban: 84.2% of population

rural: 49.5% of population

total: 68.7% of population

unimproved: urban: 15.8% of population

rural: 50.5% of population

total: 31.3% of population (2017 est.)
Major cities - population231,000 YAMOUSSOUKRO (capital) (2018), 5.355 million ABIDJAN (seat of government) (2021)3.390 million Kumasi, 2.557 million ACCRA (capital), 991,000 Sekondi Takoradi (2021)
Maternal mortality rate617 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)308 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight12.8% (2016)12.6% (2017/18)
Health expenditures4.2% (2018)3.5% (2018)
Physicians density0.23 physicians/1,000 population (2014)0.14 physicians/1,000 population (2017)
Obesity - adult prevalence rate10.3% (2016)10.9% (2016)
Mother's mean age at first birth19.6 years (2011/12 est.)

note: median age at first birth among women 20-49
20.7 years (2014 est.)

note: median age at first birth among women 25-49
Demographic profile

Cote d'Ivoire's population is likely to continue growing for the foreseeable future because almost 60% of the populace is younger than 25, the total fertility rate is holding steady at about 3.5 children per woman, and contraceptive use is under 20%. The country will need to improve education, health care, and gender equality in order to turn its large and growing youth cohort into human capital. Even prior to 2010 unrest that shuttered schools for months, access to education was poor, especially for women. As of 2015, only 53% of men and 33% of women were literate. The lack of educational attainment contributes to Cote d'Ivoire's high rates of unskilled labor, adolescent pregnancy, and HIV/AIDS prevalence.

Following its independence in 1960, Cote d'Ivoire's stability and the blossoming of its labor-intensive cocoa and coffee industries in the southwest made it an attractive destination for migrants from other parts of the country and its neighbors, particularly Burkina Faso. The HOUPHOUET-BOIGNY administration continued the French colonial policy of encouraging labor immigration by offering liberal land ownership laws. Foreigners from West Africa, Europe (mainly France), and Lebanon composed about 25% of the population by 1998.

Ongoing economic decline since the 1980s and the power struggle after HOUPHOUET-BOIGNY's death in 1993 ushered in the politics of "Ivoirite," institutionalizing an Ivoirian identity that further marginalized northern Ivoirians and scapegoated immigrants. The hostile Muslim north-Christian south divide snowballed into a 2002 civil war, pushing tens of thousands of foreign migrants, Liberian refugees, and Ivoirians to flee to war-torn Liberia or other regional countries and more than a million people to be internally displaced. Subsequently, violence following the contested 2010 presidential election prompted some 250,000 people to seek refuge in Liberia and other neighboring countries and again internally displaced as many as a million people. By July 2012, the majority had returned home, but ongoing inter-communal tension and armed conflict continue to force people from their homes.

Ghana has a young age structure, with approximately 57% of the population under the age of 25. Its total fertility rate fell significantly during the 1980s and 1990s but has stalled at around four children per woman for the last few years. Fertility remains higher in the northern region than the Greater Accra region. On average, desired fertility has remained stable for several years; urban dwellers want fewer children than rural residents. Increased life expectancy, due to better health care, nutrition, and hygiene, and reduced fertility have increased Ghana's share of elderly persons; Ghana's proportion of persons aged 60+ is among the highest in Sub-Saharan Africa. Poverty has declined in Ghana, but it remains pervasive in the northern region, which is susceptible to droughts and floods and has less access to transportation infrastructure, markets, fertile farming land, and industrial centers. The northern region also has lower school enrollment, higher illiteracy, and fewer opportunities for women.

Ghana was a country of immigration in the early years after its 1957 independence, attracting labor migrants largely from Nigeria and other neighboring countries to mine minerals and harvest cocoa - immigrants composed about 12% of Ghana's population in 1960. In the late 1960s, worsening economic and social conditions discouraged immigration, and hundreds of thousands of immigrants, mostly Nigerians, were expelled.

During the 1970s, severe drought and an economic downturn transformed Ghana into a country of emigration; neighboring Cote d'Ivoire was the initial destination. Later, hundreds of thousands of Ghanaians migrated to Nigeria to work in its booming oil industry, but most were deported in 1983 and 1985 as oil prices plummeted. Many Ghanaians then turned to more distant destinations, including other parts of Africa, Europe, and North America, but the majority continued to migrate within West Africa. Since the 1990s, increased emigration of skilled Ghanaians, especially to the US and the UK, drained the country of its health care and education professionals. Internally, poverty and other developmental disparities continue to drive Ghanaians from the north to the south, particularly to its urban centers.

Contraceptive prevalence rate23.3% (2018)27.2% (2017/18)
Dependency ratiostotal dependency ratio: 79.8

youth dependency ratio: 74.6

elderly dependency ratio: 5.2

potential support ratio: 19.3 (2020 est.)
total dependency ratio: 67.4

youth dependency ratio: 62.2

elderly dependency ratio: 5.3

potential support ratio: 17.1 (2020 est.)

Source: CIA Factbook