Congo Republic of The People 2024, CIA World Factbook
Population
5,677,493 (2023 est.)
Nationality
noun: Congolese (singular and plural)
adjective: Congolese or Congo
Ethnic groups
Kongo (Bakongo) 40.5%, Teke 16.9%, Mbochi 13.1%, foreigner 8.2%, Sangha 5.6%, Mbere/Mbeti/Kele 4.4%, Punu 4.3%, Pygmy 1.6%, Oubanguiens 1.6%, Duma 1.5%, Makaa 1.3%, other and unspecified 1% (2014-15 est.)
Languages
French (official), French Lingala and Monokutuba (lingua franca trade languages), many local languages and dialects (of which Kikongo is the most widespread)
major-language sample(s):
Buku oyo ya bosembo ya Mokili Mobimba Ezali na Makanisi ya Liboso Mpenza. (Lingala)
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Lingala audio sample:
Religions
Roman Catholic 33.1%, Awakening Churches/Christian Revival 22.3%, Protestant 19.9%, Salutiste 2.2%, Muslim 1.6%, Kimbanguiste 1.5%, other 8.1%, none 11.3% (2007 est.)
Demographic profile
The Republic of the Congo is one of the most urbanized countries in Africa, with nearly 70% of Congolese living in urban areas. The population is concentrated in the southwest of the country, mainly in the capital Brazzaville, Pointe-Noire, and along the railway line that connects the two. The tropical jungles in the north of the country are sparsely populated. Most Congolese are Bantu, and most belong to one of four main ethnic groups, the Kongo, Teke, Mbochi, and Sangha, which consist of over 70 subgroups.
The Republic of Congo is in the early stages of a demographic transition, whereby a population shifts from high fertility and mortality rates to low fertility and mortality rates associated with industrialized societies. Its total fertility rate (TFR), the average number of children born per woman, remains high at 4.4 as of 2022. While its TFR has steadily decreased, the progress slowed beginning in about 1995. The slowdown in fertility reduction has delayed the demographic transition and Congo’s potential to reap a demographic dividend, the economic boost that can occur when the share of the working-age population is larger than the dependent age groups.
The TFR differs significantly between urban and rural areas – 3.7 in urban areas versus 6.5 in rural areas. The TFR also varies among regions. The urban regions of Brazzaville and Pointe-Noire have much lower TFRs than other regions, which are predominantly or completely rural. The gap between desired fertility and actual fertility is also greatest in rural areas. Rural families may have more children to contribute to agricultural production and/or due to a lack of information about and access to contraception. Urban families may prefer to have fewer children because raising them is more expensive and balancing work and childcare may be more difficult. The number of births among teenage girls, the frequency of giving birth before the age of fifteen, and a lack of education are the most likely reasons for higher TFRs in rural areas. Although 90% of school-age children are enrolled in primary school, repetition and dropout rates are high and the quality of education is poor. Congolese women with no or little education start having children earlier and have more children in total than those with at least some secondary education.
Age structure
0-14 years: 40.44% (male 1,159,264/female 1,136,501)
15-64 years: 56.15% (male 1,598,111/female 1,590,032)
65 years and over: 3.41% (2023 est.) (male 88,323/female 105,262)
2023 population pyramid: 
Dependency ratios
total dependency ratio: 78.8
youth dependency ratio: 74
elderly dependency ratio: 4.8
potential support ratio: 20.9 (2021 est.)
Median age
total: 20.5 years (2023 est.)
male: 20.3 years
female: 20.7 years
Population growth rate
2.4% (2023 est.)
Birth rate
29.1 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)
Death rate
5 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)
Net migration rate
-0.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)
Population distribution
the population is primarily located in the south, in and around the capital of Brazzaville as shown in this 
Urbanization
urban population: 69.2% of total population (2023)
rate of urbanization: 3.19% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas - population
2.638 million BRAZZAVILLE (capital), 1.336 million Pointe-Noire (2023)
Sex ratio
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female
total population: 1 male(s)/female (2023 est.)
Mother's mean age at first birth
19.6 years (2011/12 est.)
note: data represents median age at first birth among women 20-49
Maternal mortality ratio
282 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
Infant mortality rate
total: 31.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)
male: 34.3 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 28.4 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 72.2 years (2023 est.)
male: 70.8 years
female: 73.6 years
Total fertility rate
3.86 children born/woman (2023 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
1.9 (2023 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate
30.1% (2014/15)
Drinking water source
improved: urban: 97.5% of population
rural: 56.4% of population
total: 84.2% of population
unimproved: urban: 2.5% of population
rural: 43.6% of population
total: 15.8% of population (2020 est.)
Current health expenditure
4.5% of GDP (2020)
Physicians density
0.1 physicians/1,000 population (2018)
Sanitation facility access
improved: urban: 73.4% of population
rural: 15.1% of population
total: 54.7% of population
unimproved: urban: 26.6% of population
rural: 84.9% of population
total: 45.3% of population (2020 est.)
Major infectious diseases
degree of risk: very high (2023)
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: malaria and dengue fever
water contact diseases: schistosomiasis
animal contact diseases: rabies
note: on 31 August 2023, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a Travel Alert for polio in Africa; the Republic of the Congo is currently considered a high risk to travelers for circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses (cVDPV); vaccine-derived poliovirus (VDPV) is a strain of the weakened poliovirus that was initially included in oral polio vaccine (OPV) and that has changed over time and behaves more like the wild or naturally occurring virus; this means it can be spread more easily to people who are unvaccinated against polio and who come in contact with the stool or respiratory secretions, such as from a sneeze, of an “infected” person who received oral polio vaccine; the CDC recommends that before any international travel, anyone unvaccinated, incompletely vaccinated, or with an unknown polio vaccination status should complete the routine polio vaccine series; before travel to any high-risk destination, the CDC recommends that adults who previously completed the full, routine polio vaccine series receive a single, lifetime booster dose of polio vaccine
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
9.6% (2016)
Alcohol consumption per capita
total: 5.74 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
beer: 5.11 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine: 0.1 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits: 0.52 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols: 0.01 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Tobacco use
total: 14.5% (2020 est.)
male: 26.8% (2020 est.)
female: 2.1% (2020 est.)
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
12.3% (2014/15)
Currently married women (ages 15-49)
51.8% (2023 est.)
Child marriage
women married by age 15: 8.4%
women married by age 18: 29.1%
men married by age 18: 5.6% (2018 est.)
Education expenditures
4.5% of GDP (2020 est.)
Literacy
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 80.6%
male: 85.9%
female: 75.4% (2021)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)
total: 11 years
male: 11 years
female: 11 years (2012)
NOTE: The information regarding Congo Republic of The on this page is re-published from the 2024 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Congo Republic of The 2024 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Congo Republic of The 2024 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.