Rural population, per capita in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income): Rural population, per capita was 0.5534 units per person in 2025. ▼ Falling
Rural population, per capita in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), 1960–2025
Source: Statizoid (derived). Measured in units per person.
Analysis
In 2025, rural population, per capita in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) stood at 0.5534 units per person. That is the lowest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.9% on the previous year and down 8.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population, per capita in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) peaked at 0.8566 units per person in 1960 and was at its lowest, 0.5534 units per person, in 2025.
Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 13th of 45 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population, per capita in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income), year by year
| Year | units per person | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 0.8566 units per person | — |
| 1961 | 0.8531 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1962 | 0.8493 units per person | -0.4% |
| 1963 | 0.8455 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1964 | 0.8415 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1965 | 0.8373 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1966 | 0.833 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1967 | 0.8287 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1968 | 0.8243 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1969 | 0.8198 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1970 | 0.8152 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1971 | 0.8105 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1972 | 0.8055 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1973 | 0.8004 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1974 | 0.7954 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1975 | 0.7903 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1976 | 0.7854 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1977 | 0.7804 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1978 | 0.7757 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1979 | 0.7712 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1980 | 0.7665 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1981 | 0.762 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1982 | 0.7576 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1983 | 0.7529 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1984 | 0.748 units per person | -0.7% |
| 1985 | 0.7428 units per person | -0.7% |
| 1986 | 0.7376 units per person | -0.7% |
| 1987 | 0.7319 units per person | -0.8% |
| 1988 | 0.7264 units per person | -0.8% |
| 1989 | 0.7209 units per person | -0.8% |
| 1990 | 0.7157 units per person | -0.7% |
| 1991 | 0.7105 units per person | -0.7% |
| 1992 | 0.7063 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1993 | 0.7023 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1994 | 0.6979 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1995 | 0.6938 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1996 | 0.6901 units per person | -0.5% |
| 1997 | 0.6863 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1998 | 0.6821 units per person | -0.6% |
| 1999 | 0.6778 units per person | -0.6% |
| 2000 | 0.6734 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2001 | 0.6688 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2002 | 0.664 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2003 | 0.659 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2004 | 0.6539 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2005 | 0.6488 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2006 | 0.6436 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2007 | 0.639 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2008 | 0.6338 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2009 | 0.6291 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2010 | 0.6247 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2011 | 0.6202 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2012 | 0.6158 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 0.6112 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2014 | 0.6064 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2015 | 0.6016 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2016 | 0.597 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2017 | 0.5923 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2018 | 0.5874 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 0.5829 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 0.5783 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2021 | 0.5735 units per person | -0.8% |
| 2022 | 0.5684 units per person | -0.9% |
| 2023 | 0.5636 units per person | -0.9% |
| 2024 | 0.5585 units per person | -0.9% |
| 2025 | 0.5534 units per person | -0.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.8389 units per person | 0.8198 units per person | 0.8566 units per person | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.793 units per person | 0.7712 units per person | 0.8152 units per person | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.7446 units per person | 0.7209 units per person | 0.7665 units per person | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.6963 units per person | 0.6778 units per person | 0.7157 units per person | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.6513 units per person | 0.6291 units per person | 0.6734 units per person | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.604 units per person | 0.5829 units per person | 0.6247 units per person | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.566 units per person | 0.5534 units per person | 0.5783 units per person | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
- 10 Micronesia, Federated States of 0.7752 units per person compare
- 11 Ethiopia 0.7589 units per person compare
- 12 Antigua and Barbuda 0.7567 units per person compare
- 13 Burundi 0.7431 units per person compare
- 14 Afghanistan 0.7406 units per person compare
- 15 Tajikistan 0.7384 units per person compare
- 16 Guyana 0.7351 units per person compare
More agriculture & rural data for Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 2.6% (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 395.90 billion current US$ (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 17.9% (2025)
- Rural population 731.36 million (2025)
- Rural population growth 1.5% (2025)
- Rural population 55.3% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2024)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1792 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 1.53 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population, per capita in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- Rural population, per capita in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) was 0.5534 units per person in 2025, according to Statizoid (derived).
- What is the highest rural population, per capita recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- The highest recorded value was 0.8566 units per person in 1960.
- What is the lowest rural population, per capita recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5534 units per person in 2025.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) rank for rural population, per capita?
- Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) ranks 13th out of 45 groups with data for 2025.
- Is rural population, per capita rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income) data come from?
- The figures come from Statizoid (derived), published as part of Rural population, per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page.
How this figure is calculated
Rural population divided by Population, total, matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.
Rural population ÷ Population, total
Computed from
- Rural population World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN)
- Population, total World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN)
Statizoid computes this series; the underlying measurements belong to the publishers named above. The arithmetic is applied to every country and year where both inputs report, and nothing is estimated unless the page says so.
About this data
Rural population divided by Population, total, matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.