Rural population in Eritrea
Eritrea: Rural population was 65.5% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
65.5%
Change on year
down 0.0%
World rank
32nd
of 217 countries
All-time high
89.6%
in 1960
All-time low
64.3%
in 2012
Years of data
66
1960–2025
Rural population in Eritrea, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of total population.
Analysis
Eritrea recorded 65.5% for rural population in 2025.
The figure is up 1.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Eritrea peaked at 89.6% in 1960 and was at its lowest, 64.3%, in 2012.
Eritrea ranks 32nd of 217 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Rural population in Eritrea, year by year
| Year | % of total population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 89.6% | — |
| 1961 | 89.3% | -0.3% |
| 1962 | 89.0% | -0.3% |
| 1963 | 88.8% | -0.3% |
| 1964 | 88.5% | -0.3% |
| 1965 | 88.3% | -0.3% |
| 1966 | 88.0% | -0.3% |
| 1967 | 87.8% | -0.3% |
| 1968 | 87.6% | -0.2% |
| 1969 | 87.4% | -0.2% |
| 1970 | 87.2% | -0.2% |
| 1971 | 87.0% | -0.2% |
| 1972 | 86.9% | -0.2% |
| 1973 | 86.7% | -0.2% |
| 1974 | 86.6% | -0.2% |
| 1975 | 86.4% | -0.2% |
| 1976 | 86.3% | -0.2% |
| 1977 | 86.1% | -0.2% |
| 1978 | 86.0% | -0.2% |
| 1979 | 85.8% | -0.2% |
| 1980 | 85.6% | -0.2% |
| 1981 | 85.5% | -0.2% |
| 1982 | 85.3% | -0.2% |
| 1983 | 85.1% | -0.2% |
| 1984 | 84.8% | -0.3% |
| 1985 | 84.6% | -0.3% |
| 1986 | 84.2% | -0.4% |
| 1987 | 83.8% | -0.5% |
| 1988 | 83.3% | -0.6% |
| 1989 | 82.3% | -1.2% |
| 1990 | 81.4% | -1.1% |
| 1991 | 80.2% | -1.5% |
| 1992 | 78.6% | -2.0% |
| 1993 | 76.7% | -2.3% |
| 1994 | 74.8% | -2.6% |
| 1995 | 72.8% | -2.7% |
| 1996 | 70.8% | -2.7% |
| 1997 | 69.1% | -2.5% |
| 1998 | 67.6% | -2.1% |
| 1999 | 66.5% | -1.6% |
| 2000 | 65.9% | -0.9% |
| 2001 | 65.7% | -0.3% |
| 2002 | 65.5% | -0.3% |
| 2003 | 65.3% | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 65.1% | -0.3% |
| 2005 | 64.9% | -0.3% |
| 2006 | 64.7% | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 64.6% | -0.2% |
| 2008 | 64.5% | -0.2% |
| 2009 | 64.4% | -0.1% |
| 2010 | 64.4% | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 64.3% | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 64.3% | -0.0% |
| 2013 | 64.3% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 64.4% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 64.4% | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 64.5% | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 64.6% | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 64.7% | +0.2% |
| 2019 | 64.8% | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 64.9% | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 65.0% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 65.2% | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 65.3% | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 65.5% | +0.2% |
| 2025 | 65.5% | -0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 88.4% | 87.4% | 89.6% | 10 |
| 1970s | 86.5% | 85.8% | 87.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 84.4% | 82.3% | 85.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 73.8% | 66.5% | 81.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 65.1% | 64.4% | 65.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 64.5% | 64.3% | 64.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 65.2% | 64.9% | 65.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Eritrea
- 29 Madagascar 67.1% compare
- 30 Bangladesh 66.8% compare
- 31 Comoros 66.1% compare
- 33 Kyrgyzstan 65.3% compare
- 34 Sudan 65.1% compare
- 35 India 64.3% compare
More agriculture & rural data for Eritrea
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 13.26 % change on previous year (2009)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1412 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2009)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 90.81 current US$ per person (2009)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 2.01 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0009 units per US$ of GDP (2011)
- Rural population, per capita 0.6546 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 14.1% (2009)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 14.1% (2009)
- Rural population growth 2.0% (2025)
- Rural population 2.36 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in Eritrea?
- Rural population in Eritrea was 65.5% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Eritrea?
- The highest recorded value was 89.6% in 1960.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Eritrea?
- The lowest recorded value was 64.3% in 2012.
- How does Eritrea rank for rural population?
- Eritrea ranks 32nd out of 217 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Eritrea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Eritrea data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population (% of total population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Rural population refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population.