Population:
3,683,538
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower
life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower
population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of
population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July
2003 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 43.1% (male 799,241; female 788,370)
15-64 years: 53.5% (male 969,581; female 1,000,740)
65 years and over: 3.4% (male 53,322; female 72,284) (2003 est.)
Median age:
total: 17.9 years
male: 17.6 years
female: 18.3 years (2002)
Population growth rate:
1.62% (2003 est.)
Birth rate:
35.93 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate:
19.73 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 93.3 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 86.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
male: 100.35 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 41.71 years
male: 40.18 years
female: 43.29 years (2003 est.)
Total fertility rate:
4.68 children born/woman (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
12.9% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
250,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
22,000 (2001 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Central African(s)
adjective: Central African
Ethnic groups:
Baya 33%, Banda 27%, Mandjia 13%, Sara 10%, Mboum 7%, M'Baka 4%,
Yakoma 4%, other 2%
Religions:
indigenous beliefs 35%, Protestant 25%, Roman Catholic 25%, Muslim
15%
note: animistic beliefs and practices strongly influence the
Christian majority
Languages:
French (official), Sangho (lingua franca and national language),
tribal languages
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 51%
male: 63.3%
female: 39.9% (2003 est.)