Gaza Strip Demographics Profile

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Population1,957,062 (July 2021 est.)
Nationalitynoun: NA

adjective: NA
Ethnic groupsPalestinian Arab
LanguagesArabic, Hebrew (spoken by many Palestinians), English (widely understood)

major-language sample(s):
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ReligionsMuslim 98.0 - 99.0% (predominantly Sunni), Christian <1.0%, other, unaffiliated, unspecified <1.0% (2012 est.)

note: dismantlement of Israeli settlements was completed in September 2005; Gaza has had no Jewish population since then
Age structure0-14 years: 42.53% (male 418,751/female 397,013)

15-24 years: 21.67% (male 210,240/female 205,385)

25-54 years: 29.47% (male 275,976/female 289,277)

55-64 years: 3.66% (male 36,409/female 33,731)

65 years and over: 2.68% (male 27,248/female 24,191) (2020 est.)
Dependency ratiostotal dependency ratio: 71.2

youth dependency ratio: 65.7

elderly dependency ratio: 5.5

potential support ratio: 18.2 (2020 est.)

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Median agetotal: 18 years

male: 17.7 years

female: 18.4 years (2020 est.)
Population growth rate2.05% (2021 est.)
Birth rate28.1 births/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Death rate2.94 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Net migration rate-4.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Population distributionpopulation concentrated in major cities, particularly Gaza City in the north
Urbanizationurban population: 77% of total population (2021)

rate of urbanization: 2.85% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Sex ratioat birth: 1.06 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 1.02 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 0.95 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 1.08 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 1.13 male(s)/female

total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2020 est.)
Maternal mortality rate27 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Infant mortality ratetotal: 15.6 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 16.8 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 14.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.)
Life expectancy at birthtotal population: 75.14 years

male: 73.38 years

female: 77 years (2021 est.)
Total fertility rate3.54 children born/woman (2021 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate57.3% (2019/20)

note:  includes Gaza Strip and West Bank
Drinking water sourceimproved: urban: 97.1% of population

rural: 97.1% of population

total: 96.8% of population

unimproved: urban: 2.9% of population

rural: 2.9% of population

total: 3.2% of population (2017 est.)

note: includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Physicians density2.77 physicians/1,000 population (2018)
Hospital bed density1.3 beds/1,000 population (2018)
Sanitation facility accessimproved: urban: 100% of population

rural: 99.3% of population

total: 99.8% of population

unimproved: urban: 0% of population

rural: 0.7% of population

total: 0.2% of population (2017 est.)

note: note includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rateNA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDSNA
HIV/AIDS - deathsNA
Children under the age of 5 years underweight2.1% (2019/20)

note: estimate is for Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Education expenditures5.3% of GDP (2017)

note: includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Literacydefinition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 97.2%

male: 98.7%

female: 95.7% (2018)

note: estimates are for Gaza and the West Bank
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)total: 13 years

male: 13 years

female: 14 years (2013)

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021

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