Rural population — all countries

Rural population — Northern Africa

Rural population in Northern Africa in 2025 — 131,355,996 people. Since 1960, the indicator has risen by 198.7%.

2025 131M people +1.21% vs 2024
World rank
Period maximum 131M people2025
Period minimum 43.98M people1960

Trend over time

1960–2025 · people

Rural population — Northern Africa, 1960–2025050M100M150M19601967197419811988199520022009201620231960: 43,977,430 people1962: 45,253,581 people1964: 46,570,790 people1966: 48,109,541 people1968: 49,908,169 people1970: 51,738,542 people1972: 53,646,911 people1974: 55,949,869 people1976: 58,738,290 people1978: 61,613,148 people1980: 64,657,076 people1982: 67,809,633 people1984: 70,676,803 people1986: 73,036,573 people1988: 75,175,608 people1990: 77,448,712 people1992: 79,882,433 people1994: 82,553,707 people1996: 85,199,537 people1998: 87,811,216 people2000: 90,516,154 people2002: 93,210,879 people2004: 95,844,930 people2006: 98,556,915 people2008: 101,418,633 people2010: 104,545,332 people2012: 107,758,619 people2014: 111,539,995 people2016: 115,694,093 people2018: 120,084,897 people2020: 123,747,912 people2022: 127,128,735 people2024: 129,790,539 people2025: 131,355,996 people
Change over the period: +87.38M (+198.69%) Average annual rate: 1.7 %

Comparison, 2025

How the value compares with the world and the groups this territory belongs to: Northern Africa

Northern Africa 131M people
World 3.46B people
Rural population — Northern Africa, by year Northern Africa All countries CSV XLSX
Year people Change Change, %
2025 131M +1.57M +1.21%
2024 130M +1.26M +0.98%
2023 129M +1.4M +1.1%
2022 127M +1.7M +1.36%
2021 125M +1.68M +1.36%
2020 124M +1.76M +1.44%
2019 122M +1.9M +1.59%
2018 120M +2.14M +1.81%
2017 118M +2.25M +1.95%
2016 116M +2.12M +1.87%
2015 114M +2.03M +1.82%
2014 112M +1.96M +1.79%
2013 110M +1.82M +1.69%
2012 108M +1.67M +1.58%
2011 106M +1.54M +1.47%
2010 105M +1.54M +1.5%
2009 103M +1.58M +1.56%
2008 101M +1.48M +1.48%
2007 99.94M +1.39M +1.41%
2006 98.56M +1.36M +1.4%
2005 97.2M +1.35M +1.41%
2004 95.84M +1.32M +1.39%
2003 94.53M +1.32M +1.41%
2002 93.21M +1.35M +1.47%
2001 91.86M +1.35M +1.49%
2000 90.52M +1.35M +1.51%
1999 89.17M +1.36M +1.55%
1998 87.81M +1.35M +1.56%
1997 86.47M +1.27M +1.49%
1996 85.2M +1.29M +1.53%
1995 83.91M +1.36M +1.65%
1994 82.55M +1.32M +1.63%
1993 81.23M +1.35M +1.69%
1992 79.88M +1.22M +1.55%
1991 78.66M +1.22M +1.57%
1990 77.45M +1.2M +1.57%
1989 76.25M +1.08M +1.43%
1988 75.18M +1.07M +1.44%
1987 74.11M +1.07M +1.47%
1986 73.04M +1.13M +1.58%
1985 71.9M +1.23M +1.73%
1984 70.68M +1.35M +1.95%
1983 69.33M +1.52M +2.24%
1982 67.81M +1.56M +2.35%
1981 66.25M +1.59M +2.47%
1980 64.66M +1.56M +2.47%
1979 63.1M +1.49M +2.42%
1978 61.61M +1.44M +2.4%
1977 60.17M +1.43M +2.44%
1976 58.74M +1.47M +2.57%
1975 57.27M +1.32M +2.35%
1974 55.95M +1.19M +2.17%
1973 54.76M +1.11M +2.07%
1972 53.65M +961,002 +1.82%
1971 52.69M +947,367 +1.83%
1970 51.74M +920,628 +1.81%
1969 50.82M +909,745 +1.82%
1968 49.91M +900,735 +1.84%
1967 49.01M +897,893 +1.87%
1966 48.11M +818,423 +1.73%
1965 47.29M +720,328 +1.55%
1964 46.57M +677,502 +1.48%
1963 45.89M +639,707 +1.41%
1962 45.25M +619,045 +1.39%
1961 44.63M +657,106 +1.49%
1960 43.98M

About the indicator

The population living outside urban settlements. In the catalog this quantity was present only as a share, while the absolute number shows what the share does not: the world's rural population stopped growing only in the 2020s and still exceeds three billion people, even though the share has been falling for half a century. Each country defines a city itself, so cross-country comparisons of this series call for caution.

Important: It is computed as the difference between total and urban population, and the criterion for a city is national: in some places it is a settlement of two thousand residents, in others twenty thousand. Comparing the trend within a country is more reliable than comparing countries with each other.

Source: World Population Prospects (UN), license CC BY 3.0 IGO.