Brunei vs South Africa Demographics: Median age, Gender, Race, Religion

Median age history and projection chart in
Brunei vs South Africa

Table

Year	Median age
	Brunei	South Africa
1960	18.8	19
1961	18.1	19
1962	17.5	18.9
1963	17.1	18.9
1964	17	18.9
1965	17	18.8
1966	17.2	18.8
1967	17.3	18.8
1968	17.5	18.8
1969	17.7	18.8
1970	17.8	18.8
1971	17.9	18.8
1972	18	18.8
1973	18.2	18.8
1974	18.3	18.9
1975	18.6	18.9
1976	18.8	19
1977	19.1	19.1
1978	19.4	19.2
1979	19.6	19.3
1980	20	19.4
1981	20.3	19.6
1982	20.6	19.8
1983	21	20
1984	21.3	20.2
1985	21.7	20.4
1986	22	20.5
1987	22.3	20.7
1988	22.6	20.9
1989	22.8	21.1
1990	23.1	21.3
1991	23.4	21.5
1992	23.6	21.5
1993	23.8	21.9
1994	24.1	22
1995	24.4	21.5
1996	24.7	21.2
1997	24.9	21.2
1998	25.2	21.4
1999	25.5	21.6
2000	25.8	21.9
2001	26.1	22.2
2002	26.4	22.4
2003	26.8	22.8
2004	27.1	23.1
2005	27.5	23.3
2006	27.9	23.5
2007	28.1	23.8
2008	28	24
2009	28	24.3
2010	28	24.6
2011	28.1	25
2012	28.4	25.3
2013	28.8	25.7
2014	29.1	26
2015	29.5	26.4
2016	29.8	26.7
2017	30.2	27
2018	30.6	27.5
2019	31	27.9
2020	31.4	28.3
2021	31.8	28.6
2022	32.3	28.9
2023	32.8	29.2
2024	33.2	29.5
2025	33.7	29.7
2026	34.2	29.9
2027	34.6	30.1
2028	35.1	30.3
2029	35.6	30.4
2030	36	30.6
2031	36.5	30.7
2032	36.9	30.9
2033	37.4	31
2034	37.8	31
2035	38.2	31.2
2036	38.6	31.3
2037	38.9	31.5
2038	39.3	31.6
2039	39.6	31.8
2040	40	32
2041	40.3	32.2
2042	40.5	32.3
2043	40.8	32.5
2044	41.1	32.6
2045	41.3	32.8
2046	41.6	32.9
2047	41.8	33
2048	42	33.1
2049	42.2	33.2
2050	42.3	33.3

In 1960, the median age in Brunei was 18.8 years compared to 19 years in South Africa. As of 2024, the median age had increased to 33.2 years in Brunei and to 29.5 years in South Africa.

According to United Nations projections, the median age in Brunei is expected to increased to around 42.3 years by 2050 compared to 33.3 years in South Africa. The aging demographics forecast is based on previous years' birth rates and increasing life expectancy.

Demographic pyramid: age and gender distribution

Table

Age range	Share of population
	Brunei		South Africa
	Male	Female	Male	Female
0-4	3.5%	3.25%	4.65%	4.58%
5-9	3.67%	3.39%	4.19%	4.17%
10-14	3.65%	3.37%	4.16%	4.14%
15-19	3.59%	3.3%	4.21%	4.16%
20-24	4.09%	3.7%	4.04%	3.93%
25-29	4.8%	3.87%	4.34%	4.37%
30-34	5.04%	3.95%	4.42%	4.52%
35-39	5.01%	3.83%	4.2%	4.25%
40-44	4.59%	3.62%	3.64%	3.66%
45-49	3.97%	3.39%	2.77%	2.86%
50-54	3.36%	3.08%	2.18%	2.44%
55-59	2.62%	2.49%	1.76%	2.17%
60-64	2.02%	2.02%	1.51%	1.96%
65-69	1.44%	1.56%	1.14%	1.55%
70-74	0.92%	1.04%	0.74%	1.11%
75-79	0.46%	0.56%	0.36%	0.63%
80+	0.38%	0.5%	0.34%	0.81%

The chart above is a variation of a population pyramid and represents a comparison of age and gender structure. Brunei has low demographic potential with 53.2% of people in the 0-34 age group compared to 59.9% and average potential in South Africa.

Age dependency chart

Table

Year	Age dependency ratio
	Brunei			South Africa
	Total	Young	Old	Total	Young	Old
1960	91.4%	84.4%	7.03%	83.4%	77.2%	6.22%
1961	95.4%	88.4%	7.04%	83.4%	77.2%	6.2%
1962	98.6%	91.6%	6.99%	83.4%	77.2%	6.18%
1963	100%	93.1%	6.89%	83.3%	77.1%	6.19%
1964	100.1%	93.3%	6.74%	83.3%	77.1%	6.22%
1965	99%	92.5%	6.55%	83.5%	77.2%	6.26%
1966	96.9%	90.6%	6.33%	83.8%	77.5%	6.32%
1967	94.5%	88.3%	6.13%	84%	77.7%	6.39%
1968	91.9%	86%	5.92%	84.3%	77.8%	6.46%
1969	89.3%	83.6%	5.73%	84.5%	77.9%	6.54%
1970	86.8%	81.5%	5.35%	84.6%	78%	6.61%
1971	84.9%	80%	4.91%	84.7%	78%	6.67%
1972	83.8%	79%	4.78%	84.6%	77.9%	6.72%
1973	82.6%	77.8%	4.84%	84.5%	77.7%	6.76%
1974	80.9%	76%	4.87%	84.3%	77.5%	6.79%
1975	78.8%	73.9%	4.88%	84%	77.2%	6.83%
1976	76.6%	71.7%	4.86%	83.7%	76.9%	6.85%
1977	74.4%	69.6%	4.82%	83.3%	76.4%	6.87%
1978	72.7%	67.9%	4.79%	82.6%	75.7%	6.88%
1979	71.4%	66.6%	4.75%	82%	75.1%	6.89%
1980	70.2%	65.5%	4.7%	80.9%	74%	6.88%
1981	69.1%	64.4%	4.65%	79.6%	72.7%	6.87%
1982	67.5%	62.9%	4.57%	78.4%	71.5%	6.88%
1983	65.6%	61.1%	4.49%	77.5%	70.6%	6.91%
1984	63.9%	59.5%	4.43%	76.7%	69.8%	6.95%
1985	62.4%	58.1%	4.37%	76%	69%	6.98%
1986	61.1%	56.8%	4.31%	75.2%	68.2%	6.98%
1987	60.2%	55.9%	4.26%	74.4%	67.4%	6.96%
1988	59.6%	55.4%	4.21%	73.5%	66.6%	6.93%
1989	59.2%	55%	4.17%	72.6%	65.7%	6.86%
1990	58.8%	54.6%	4.13%	71.5%	64.7%	6.78%
1991	58.7%	54.6%	4.11%	70.9%	64.1%	6.74%
1992	58.5%	54.4%	4.08%	71.1%	64.3%	6.82%
1993	57.9%	53.8%	4.05%	70.2%	63.4%	6.79%
1994	57%	53%	4.05%	70.2%	63.3%	6.89%
1995	56%	51.9%	4.06%	71.5%	64.3%	7.18%
1996	54.8%	50.7%	4.08%	72%	64.6%	7.46%
1997	53.5%	49.4%	4.11%	71.6%	63.9%	7.69%
1998	52.3%	48.1%	4.13%	69.8%	62%	7.79%
1999	50.9%	46.8%	4.15%	67.8%	60%	7.84%
2000	49.5%	45.3%	4.17%	65.7%	57.8%	7.87%
2001	48%	43.8%	4.19%	63.5%	55.7%	7.88%
2002	46.5%	42.3%	4.22%	61.4%	53.5%	7.88%
2003	45.1%	40.8%	4.25%	59.5%	51.6%	7.9%
2004	43.7%	39.4%	4.31%	57.9%	49.9%	7.93%
2005	42.4%	38%	4.4%	56.7%	48.7%	7.98%
2006	41.1%	36.6%	4.49%	55.7%	47.7%	8.03%
2007	40.5%	35.9%	4.6%	54.8%	46.8%	8.05%
2008	40.5%	35.8%	4.7%	54.2%	46.1%	8.07%
2009	40.5%	35.7%	4.78%	53.7%	45.6%	8.07%
2010	40.4%	35.6%	4.82%	53%	45%	8.03%
2011	40.2%	35.3%	4.88%	52.4%	44.4%	7.99%
2012	39.8%	34.8%	5.02%	51.9%	43.9%	7.97%
2013	39.3%	34.1%	5.23%	51.5%	43.5%	8.01%
2014	38.8%	33.4%	5.47%	51.1%	43.1%	8.06%
2015	38.4%	32.6%	5.75%	50.8%	42.7%	8.1%
2016	38%	31.9%	6.08%	51.1%	42.8%	8.27%
2017	37.7%	31.3%	6.44%	51.3%	42.8%	8.51%
2018	37.6%	30.7%	6.84%	50.7%	42%	8.7%
2019	37.4%	30.2%	7.27%	50.1%	41.2%	8.92%
2020	37.4%	29.7%	7.71%	49.5%	40.4%	9.13%
2021	37.5%	29.3%	8.14%	48.9%	39.6%	9.28%
2022	37.7%	29.2%	8.54%	48.6%	39.1%	9.45%
2023	38%	29%	8.99%	48.4%	38.7%	9.67%
2024	38.3%	28.8%	9.5%	48.3%	38.4%	9.92%

Age dependency is the ratio of people not in the labor force (children under 15 and adults 64+) to people aged 15 to 64.

Age dependency in Brunei decreased from 43.7% to 38.3% between 2004 and 2024.

In South Africa, the ratio of dependent people decreased from 57.9% to 48.3% between 2004 and 2024 with a decreased share of young people and an increased proportion of people aged 65+.

Working age demographic

Table

Year	Working age population share
	Brunei	South Africa
1960	52.2%	54.5%
1961	51.2%	54.5%
1962	50.4%	54.5%
1963	50%	54.6%
1964	50%	54.6%
1965	50.2%	54.5%
1966	50.8%	54.4%
1967	51.4%	54.3%
1968	52.1%	54.3%
1969	52.8%	54.2%
1970	53.5%	54.2%
1971	54.1%	54.2%
1972	54.4%	54.2%
1973	54.8%	54.2%
1974	55.3%	54.3%
1975	55.9%	54.3%
1976	56.6%	54.4%
1977	57.3%	54.6%
1978	57.9%	54.8%
1979	58.4%	55%
1980	58.8%	55.3%
1981	59.2%	55.7%
1982	59.7%	56.1%
1983	60.4%	56.3%
1984	61%	56.6%
1985	61.6%	56.8%
1986	62.1%	57.1%
1987	62.4%	57.3%
1988	62.6%	57.6%
1989	62.8%	57.9%
1990	63%	58.3%
1991	63%	58.5%
1992	63.1%	58.4%
1993	63.3%	58.8%
1994	63.7%	58.8%
1995	64.1%	58.3%
1996	64.6%	58.1%
1997	65.1%	58.3%
1998	65.7%	58.9%
1999	66.3%	59.6%
2000	66.9%	60.3%
2001	67.6%	61.1%
2002	68.3%	62%
2003	68.9%	62.7%
2004	69.6%	63.3%
2005	70.2%	63.8%
2006	70.9%	64.2%
2007	71.2%	64.6%
2008	71.2%	64.9%
2009	71.2%	65.1%
2010	71.2%	65.3%
2011	71.3%	65.6%
2012	71.5%	65.8%
2013	71.8%	66%
2014	72%	66.2%
2015	72.3%	66.3%
2016	72.5%	66.2%
2017	72.6%	66.1%
2018	72.7%	66.4%
2019	72.8%	66.6%
2020	72.8%	66.9%
2021	72.7%	67.2%
2022	72.6%	67.3%
2023	72.5%	67.4%
2024	72.3%	67.4%
2025	72.1%	67.4%
2026	72%	67.3%
2027	71.9%	67.3%
2028	71.8%	67.2%
2029	71.8%	67.2%
2030	71.7%	67.1%
2031	71.6%	67%
2032	71.5%	67%
2033	71.3%	67.1%
2034	71.1%	67.2%
2035	70.9%	67.4%
2036	70.6%	67.6%
2037	70.3%	67.7%
2038	70%	67.9%
2039	69.7%	68%
2040	69.4%	68.1%
2041	69.1%	68.1%
2042	68.7%	68.2%
2043	68.3%	68.2%
2044	67.9%	68.1%
2045	67.4%	68%
2046	66.9%	67.9%
2047	66.5%	67.8%
2048	66%	67.6%
2049	65.6%	67.4%
2050	65.1%	67.2%

Between 2004 and 2024, the share of working-age demographics aged 15-64 changed from 69.6% to 72.3% in Brunei and from 63.3% to 67.4% in South Africa.

Share of young demographic (0-14 years old)

Table

Year	Share of people 0-14 years old
	Brunei	South Africa
1960	44.1%	42.1%
1961	45.2%	42.1%
1962	46.1%	42.1%
1963	46.6%	42.1%
1964	46.6%	42.1%
1965	46.5%	42.1%
1966	46%	42.1%
1967	45.4%	42.2%
1968	44.8%	42.2%
1969	44.2%	42.2%
1970	43.6%	42.3%
1971	43.3%	42.2%
1972	43%	42.2%
1973	42.6%	42.1%
1974	42%	42%
1975	41.3%	41.9%
1976	40.6%	41.8%
1977	39.9%	41.7%
1978	39.3%	41.5%
1979	38.9%	41.3%
1980	38.5%	40.9%
1981	38.1%	40.5%
1982	37.6%	40.1%
1983	36.9%	39.8%
1984	36.3%	39.5%
1985	35.7%	39.2%
1986	35.2%	38.9%
1987	34.9%	38.7%
1988	34.7%	38.4%
1989	34.6%	38.1%
1990	34.4%	37.7%
1991	34.4%	37.5%
1992	34.3%	37.6%
1993	34.1%	37.3%
1994	33.7%	37.2%
1995	33.3%	37.5%
1996	32.7%	37.5%
1997	32.2%	37.2%
1998	31.6%	36.5%
1999	31%	35.7%
2000	30.3%	34.9%
2001	29.6%	34%
2002	28.9%	33.2%
2003	28.1%	32.3%
2004	27.4%	31.6%
2005	26.7%	31.1%
2006	25.9%	30.6%
2007	25.5%	30.2%
2008	25.5%	29.9%
2009	25.4%	29.7%
2010	25.3%	29.4%
2011	25.2%	29.1%
2012	24.9%	28.9%
2013	24.5%	28.7%
2014	24%	28.5%
2015	23.6%	28.3%
2016	23.1%	28.3%
2017	22.7%	28.3%
2018	22.3%	27.9%
2019	21.9%	27.4%
2020	21.6%	27%
2021	21.3%	26.6%
2022	21.2%	26.3%
2023	21%	26.1%
2024	20.8%	25.9%
2025	20.6%	25.7%
2026	20.4%	25.6%
2027	20.1%	25.4%
2028	19.8%	25.3%
2029	19.5%	25.2%
2030	19.1%	25.2%
2031	18.8%	25.1%
2032	18.5%	25%
2033	18.2%	24.8%
2034	18%	24.5%
2035	17.7%	24.3%
2036	17.5%	23.9%
2037	17.2%	23.6%
2038	17%	23.4%
2039	16.8%	23.1%
2040	16.6%	22.9%
2041	16.4%	22.7%
2042	16.3%	22.5%
2043	16.1%	22.4%
2044	16%	22.2%
2045	15.9%	22.1%
2046	15.8%	21.9%
2047	15.7%	21.8%
2048	15.7%	21.7%
2049	15.6%	21.6%
2050	15.6%	21.5%

The share of young people aged below 15 is 20.8% in Brunei and 25.9% in South Africa. Birth rates in Brunei compared to South Africa .

Share of old population (65+)

Table

Year	Share of population 65+ years old
	Brunei	South Africa
1960	3.67%	3.39%
1961	3.6%	3.38%
1962	3.52%	3.37%
1963	3.44%	3.38%
1964	3.37%	3.39%
1965	3.29%	3.41%
1966	3.22%	3.44%
1967	3.15%	3.47%
1968	3.09%	3.51%
1969	3.02%	3.54%
1970	2.86%	3.58%
1971	2.66%	3.61%
1972	2.6%	3.64%
1973	2.65%	3.66%
1974	2.69%	3.69%
1975	2.73%	3.71%
1976	2.75%	3.73%
1977	2.76%	3.75%
1978	2.77%	3.77%
1979	2.77%	3.79%
1980	2.76%	3.8%
1981	2.75%	3.83%
1982	2.73%	3.86%
1983	2.71%	3.89%
1984	2.7%	3.93%
1985	2.69%	3.97%
1986	2.68%	3.98%
1987	2.66%	3.99%
1988	2.64%	3.99%
1989	2.62%	3.98%
1990	2.6%	3.95%
1991	2.59%	3.95%
1992	2.57%	3.99%
1993	2.57%	3.99%
1994	2.58%	4.05%
1995	2.6%	4.19%
1996	2.64%	4.34%
1997	2.68%	4.48%
1998	2.71%	4.59%
1999	2.75%	4.67%
2000	2.79%	4.75%
2001	2.83%	4.82%
2002	2.88%	4.88%
2003	2.93%	4.95%
2004	3%	5.02%
2005	3.09%	5.1%
2006	3.18%	5.15%
2007	3.27%	5.2%
2008	3.35%	5.24%
2009	3.4%	5.25%
2010	3.43%	5.25%
2011	3.48%	5.24%
2012	3.59%	5.25%
2013	3.75%	5.29%
2014	3.94%	5.33%
2015	4.16%	5.37%
2016	4.4%	5.47%
2017	4.68%	5.63%
2018	4.98%	5.78%
2019	5.29%	5.95%
2020	5.61%	6.11%
2021	5.92%	6.23%
2022	6.2%	6.36%
2023	6.51%	6.52%
2024	6.87%	6.69%
2025	7.24%	6.89%
2026	7.62%	7.08%
2027	8%	7.26%
2028	8.37%	7.44%
2029	8.75%	7.61%
2030	9.14%	7.76%
2031	9.55%	7.89%
2032	9.97%	8.01%
2033	10.4%	8.14%
2034	10.9%	8.26%
2035	11.4%	8.39%
2036	11.9%	8.52%
2037	12.4%	8.64%
2038	13%	8.76%
2039	13.5%	8.88%
2040	14%	9.01%
2041	14.5%	9.15%
2042	15%	9.3%
2043	15.6%	9.48%
2044	16.1%	9.68%
2045	16.7%	9.9%
2046	17.2%	10.1%
2047	17.8%	10.4%
2048	18.3%	10.7%
2049	18.8%	11%
2050	19.3%	11.3%

The share of older people aged 65 and over is 6.87% in Brunei and 6.69% in South Africa. Life expectancy in Brunei compared to South Africa .