Guinea-Bissau vs South Africa Demographics: Median age, Gender, Race, Religion

Median age history and projection chart in
Guinea-Bissau vs South Africa

Table

Year	Median age
	Guinea-Bissau	South Africa
1960	22.9	19
1961	22.9	19
1962	22.6	18.9
1963	22.3	18.9
1964	21.7	18.9
1965	20.7	18.8
1966	19.9	18.8
1967	19.6	18.8
1968	19.5	18.8
1969	19.3	18.8
1970	19.1	18.8
1971	19	18.8
1972	18.8	18.8
1973	18.9	18.8
1974	18.9	18.9
1975	18.8	18.9
1976	18.5	19
1977	18.2	19.1
1978	17.8	19.2
1979	17.6	19.3
1980	17.7	19.4
1981	17.6	19.6
1982	17.5	19.8
1983	17.3	20
1984	17.2	20.2
1985	17.2	20.4
1986	17.1	20.5
1987	17.1	20.7
1988	17	20.9
1989	17	21.1
1990	17.1	21.3
1991	17.1	21.5
1992	17.1	21.5
1993	17.1	21.9
1994	17.1	22
1995	17.2	21.5
1996	17.2	21.2
1997	17.3	21.2
1998	17.3	21.4
1999	17.4	21.6
2000	17.4	21.9
2001	17.5	22.2
2002	17.6	22.4
2003	17.6	22.8
2004	17.7	23.1
2005	17.8	23.3
2006	17.9	23.5
2007	17.9	23.8
2008	18	24
2009	18.1	24.3
2010	18.2	24.6
2011	18.3	25
2012	18.3	25.3
2013	18.4	25.7
2014	18.5	26
2015	18.6	26.4
2016	18.8	26.7
2017	18.9	27
2018	19.1	27.5
2019	19.2	27.9
2020	19.4	28.3
2021	19.6	28.6
2022	19.8	28.9
2023	19.9	29.2
2024	20.2	29.5
2025	20.4	29.7
2026	20.6	29.9
2027	20.8	30.1
2028	21.1	30.3
2029	21.3	30.4
2030	21.5	30.6
2031	21.8	30.7
2032	22	30.9
2033	22.3	31
2034	22.6	31
2035	22.8	31.2
2036	23.1	31.3
2037	23.4	31.5
2038	23.7	31.6
2039	23.9	31.8
2040	24.2	32
2041	24.5	32.2
2042	24.7	32.3
2043	25	32.5
2044	25.2	32.6
2045	25.5	32.8
2046	25.7	32.9
2047	26	33
2048	26.2	33.1
2049	26.5	33.2
2050	26.7	33.3

In 1960, the median age in Guinea-Bissau was 22.9 years compared to 19 years in South Africa. As of 2024, the median age had changed to 20.2 years in Guinea-Bissau and to 29.5 years in South Africa.

According to United Nations projections, the median age in Guinea-Bissau is expected to increased to around 26.7 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
	Guinea-Bissau		South Africa
	Male	Female	Male	Female
0-4	6.91%	6.72%	4.65%	4.58%
5-9	6.52%	6.36%	4.19%	4.17%
10-14	6.2%	6.07%	4.16%	4.14%
15-19	5.49%	5.41%	4.21%	4.16%
20-24	4.74%	4.69%	4.04%	3.93%
25-29	4.1%	4.09%	4.34%	4.37%
30-34	3.5%	3.52%	4.42%	4.52%
35-39	3.01%	3.05%	4.2%	4.25%
40-44	2.51%	2.57%	3.64%	3.66%
45-49	1.98%	2.15%	2.77%	2.86%
50-54	1.51%	1.71%	2.18%	2.44%
55-59	1.01%	1.25%	1.76%	2.17%
60-64	0.72%	1.03%	1.51%	1.96%
65-69	0.53%	0.85%	1.14%	1.55%
70-74	0.36%	0.58%	0.74%	1.11%
75-79	0.2%	0.31%	0.36%	0.63%
80+	0.14%	0.22%	0.34%	0.81%

The chart above is a variation of a population pyramid and represents a comparison of age and gender structure. Guinea-Bissau has high demographic potential with 74.3% 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
	Guinea-Bissau			South Africa
	Total	Young	Old	Total	Young	Old
1960	69.2%	62.4%	6.84%	83.4%	77.2%	6.22%
1961	70%	63.1%	6.93%	83.4%	77.2%	6.2%
1962	71.9%	64.9%	7.02%	83.4%	77.2%	6.18%
1963	74%	66.9%	7.14%	83.3%	77.1%	6.19%
1964	77.7%	70.4%	7.37%	83.3%	77.1%	6.22%
1965	82.5%	74.8%	7.69%	83.5%	77.2%	6.26%
1966	85.7%	77.8%	7.91%	83.8%	77.5%	6.32%
1967	86.4%	78.4%	7.93%	84%	77.7%	6.39%
1968	85.3%	77.5%	7.83%	84.3%	77.8%	6.46%
1969	85.5%	77.6%	7.84%	84.5%	77.9%	6.54%
1970	85.6%	77.7%	7.9%	84.6%	78%	6.61%
1971	85.9%	77.9%	8.01%	84.7%	78%	6.67%
1972	86.3%	78.1%	8.17%	84.6%	77.9%	6.72%
1973	85.3%	77%	8.27%	84.5%	77.7%	6.76%
1974	85.3%	76.8%	8.52%	84.3%	77.5%	6.79%
1975	87.1%	78.2%	8.86%	84%	77.2%	6.83%
1976	90.3%	81.1%	9.16%	83.7%	76.9%	6.85%
1977	94.3%	84.9%	9.39%	83.3%	76.4%	6.87%
1978	98.3%	88.8%	9.54%	82.6%	75.7%	6.88%
1979	99.4%	89.9%	9.48%	82%	75.1%	6.89%
1980	99.2%	89.7%	9.48%	80.9%	74%	6.88%
1981	100.4%	90.7%	9.69%	79.6%	72.7%	6.87%
1982	101.6%	91.7%	9.89%	78.4%	71.5%	6.88%
1983	102.7%	92.6%	10.1%	77.5%	70.6%	6.91%
1984	103.6%	93.3%	10.2%	76.7%	69.8%	6.95%
1985	104.1%	93.8%	10.3%	76%	69%	6.98%
1986	104.4%	93.9%	10.4%	75.2%	68.2%	6.98%
1987	104.4%	93.9%	10.5%	74.4%	67.4%	6.96%
1988	104.2%	93.7%	10.5%	73.5%	66.6%	6.93%
1989	103.8%	93.3%	10.5%	72.6%	65.7%	6.86%
1990	103.3%	92.8%	10.5%	71.5%	64.7%	6.78%
1991	102.4%	92.1%	10.2%	70.9%	64.1%	6.74%
1992	101.2%	91.4%	9.72%	71.1%	64.3%	6.82%
1993	100.2%	90.9%	9.27%	70.2%	63.4%	6.79%
1994	99.4%	90.6%	8.86%	70.2%	63.3%	6.89%
1995	98.5%	90%	8.49%	71.5%	64.3%	7.18%
1996	97.5%	89.3%	8.13%	72%	64.6%	7.46%
1997	96.3%	88.5%	7.8%	71.6%	63.9%	7.69%
1998	95.3%	87.8%	7.49%	69.8%	62%	7.79%
1999	94.3%	87.1%	7.2%	67.8%	60%	7.84%
2000	93.2%	86.3%	6.94%	65.7%	57.8%	7.87%
2001	92.2%	85.5%	6.69%	63.5%	55.7%	7.88%
2002	91.2%	84.7%	6.47%	61.4%	53.5%	7.88%
2003	90.3%	84%	6.26%	59.5%	51.6%	7.9%
2004	89.4%	83.3%	6.06%	57.9%	49.9%	7.93%
2005	88.6%	82.7%	5.88%	56.7%	48.7%	7.98%
2006	88%	82.2%	5.72%	55.7%	47.7%	8.03%
2007	87.3%	81.7%	5.58%	54.8%	46.8%	8.05%
2008	86.6%	81.2%	5.45%	54.2%	46.1%	8.07%
2009	85.9%	80.6%	5.35%	53.7%	45.6%	8.07%
2010	85.2%	80%	5.26%	53%	45%	8.03%
2011	84.6%	79.4%	5.19%	52.4%	44.4%	7.99%
2012	84%	78.8%	5.15%	51.9%	43.9%	7.97%
2013	83.4%	78.2%	5.12%	51.5%	43.5%	8.01%
2014	82.7%	77.6%	5.12%	51.1%	43.1%	8.06%
2015	82%	76.9%	5.13%	50.8%	42.7%	8.1%
2016	81.3%	76.1%	5.17%	51.1%	42.8%	8.27%
2017	80.4%	75.2%	5.21%	51.3%	42.8%	8.51%
2018	79.4%	74.1%	5.26%	50.7%	42%	8.7%
2019	78.3%	73%	5.32%	50.1%	41.2%	8.92%
2020	77.2%	71.8%	5.35%	49.5%	40.4%	9.13%
2021	76%	70.7%	5.36%	48.9%	39.6%	9.28%
2022	74.8%	69.4%	5.4%	48.6%	39.1%	9.45%
2023	73.6%	68.1%	5.45%	48.4%	38.7%	9.67%
2024	72.3%	66.8%	5.5%	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 Guinea-Bissau decreased from 89.4% to 72.3% 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
	Guinea-Bissau	South Africa
1960	59.1%	54.5%
1961	58.8%	54.5%
1962	58.2%	54.5%
1963	57.5%	54.6%
1964	56.3%	54.6%
1965	54.8%	54.5%
1966	53.8%	54.4%
1967	53.7%	54.3%
1968	54%	54.3%
1969	53.9%	54.2%
1970	53.9%	54.2%
1971	53.8%	54.2%
1972	53.7%	54.2%
1973	54%	54.2%
1974	54%	54.3%
1975	53.4%	54.3%
1976	52.6%	54.4%
1977	51.5%	54.6%
1978	50.4%	54.8%
1979	50.2%	55%
1980	50.2%	55.3%
1981	49.9%	55.7%
1982	49.6%	56.1%
1983	49.3%	56.3%
1984	49.1%	56.6%
1985	49%	56.8%
1986	48.9%	57.1%
1987	48.9%	57.3%
1988	49%	57.6%
1989	49.1%	57.9%
1990	49.2%	58.3%
1991	49.4%	58.5%
1992	49.7%	58.4%
1993	49.9%	58.8%
1994	50.1%	58.8%
1995	50.4%	58.3%
1996	50.6%	58.1%
1997	50.9%	58.3%
1998	51.2%	58.9%
1999	51.5%	59.6%
2000	51.8%	60.3%
2001	52%	61.1%
2002	52.3%	62%
2003	52.6%	62.7%
2004	52.8%	63.3%
2005	53%	63.8%
2006	53.2%	64.2%
2007	53.4%	64.6%
2008	53.6%	64.9%
2009	53.8%	65.1%
2010	54%	65.3%
2011	54.2%	65.6%
2012	54.4%	65.8%
2013	54.5%	66%
2014	54.7%	66.2%
2015	54.9%	66.3%
2016	55.2%	66.2%
2017	55.4%	66.1%
2018	55.8%	66.4%
2019	56.1%	66.6%
2020	56.4%	66.9%
2021	56.8%	67.2%
2022	57.2%	67.3%
2023	57.6%	67.4%
2024	58%	67.4%
2025	58.4%	67.4%
2026	58.9%	67.3%
2027	59.3%	67.3%
2028	59.8%	67.2%
2029	60.2%	67.2%
2030	60.6%	67.1%
2031	61%	67%
2032	61.3%	67%
2033	61.7%	67.1%
2034	61.9%	67.2%
2035	62.2%	67.4%
2036	62.5%	67.6%
2037	62.7%	67.7%
2038	62.9%	67.9%
2039	63.2%	68%
2040	63.4%	68.1%
2041	63.6%	68.1%
2042	63.7%	68.2%
2043	64%	68.2%
2044	64.2%	68.1%
2045	64.4%	68%
2046	64.5%	67.9%
2047	64.7%	67.8%
2048	64.9%	67.6%
2049	65.1%	67.4%
2050	65.2%	67.2%

Between 2004 and 2024, the share of working-age demographics aged 15-64 changed from 52.8% to 58% in Guinea-Bissau 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
	Guinea-Bissau	South Africa
1960	36.9%	42.1%
1961	37.1%	42.1%
1962	37.7%	42.1%
1963	38.4%	42.1%
1964	39.6%	42.1%
1965	41%	42.1%
1966	41.9%	42.1%
1967	42.1%	42.2%
1968	41.8%	42.2%
1969	41.9%	42.2%
1970	41.9%	42.3%
1971	41.9%	42.2%
1972	41.9%	42.2%
1973	41.6%	42.1%
1974	41.4%	42%
1975	41.8%	41.9%
1976	42.6%	41.8%
1977	43.7%	41.7%
1978	44.8%	41.5%
1979	45.1%	41.3%
1980	45%	40.9%
1981	45.3%	40.5%
1982	45.5%	40.1%
1983	45.7%	39.8%
1984	45.9%	39.5%
1985	45.9%	39.2%
1986	46%	38.9%
1987	45.9%	38.7%
1988	45.9%	38.4%
1989	45.8%	38.1%
1990	45.7%	37.7%
1991	45.5%	37.5%
1992	45.5%	37.6%
1993	45.4%	37.3%
1994	45.4%	37.2%
1995	45.3%	37.5%
1996	45.2%	37.5%
1997	45.1%	37.2%
1998	45%	36.5%
1999	44.8%	35.7%
2000	44.7%	34.9%
2001	44.5%	34%
2002	44.3%	33.2%
2003	44.2%	32.3%
2004	44%	31.6%
2005	43.9%	31.1%
2006	43.8%	30.6%
2007	43.6%	30.2%
2008	43.5%	29.9%
2009	43.3%	29.7%
2010	43.2%	29.4%
2011	43%	29.1%
2012	42.8%	28.9%
2013	42.7%	28.7%
2014	42.5%	28.5%
2015	42.2%	28.3%
2016	42%	28.3%
2017	41.7%	28.3%
2018	41.3%	27.9%
2019	40.9%	27.4%
2020	40.5%	27%
2021	40.1%	26.6%
2022	39.7%	26.3%
2023	39.2%	26.1%
2024	38.8%	25.9%
2025	38.3%	25.7%
2026	37.8%	25.6%
2027	37.4%	25.4%
2028	36.9%	25.3%
2029	36.4%	25.2%
2030	36%	25.2%
2031	35.5%	25.1%
2032	35.1%	25%
2033	34.8%	24.8%
2034	34.4%	24.5%
2035	34.1%	24.3%
2036	33.7%	23.9%
2037	33.4%	23.6%
2038	33%	23.4%
2039	32.7%	23.1%
2040	32.4%	22.9%
2041	32%	22.7%
2042	31.7%	22.5%
2043	31.4%	22.4%
2044	31%	22.2%
2045	30.7%	22.1%
2046	30.4%	21.9%
2047	30.1%	21.8%
2048	29.7%	21.7%
2049	29.4%	21.6%
2050	29.1%	21.5%

The share of young people aged below 15 is 38.8% in Guinea-Bissau and 25.9% in South Africa. Birth rates in Guinea-Bissau compared to South Africa .

Share of old population (65+)

Table

Year	Share of population 65+ years old
	Guinea-Bissau	South Africa
1960	4.04%	3.39%
1961	4.07%	3.38%
1962	4.08%	3.37%
1963	4.1%	3.38%
1964	4.15%	3.39%
1965	4.21%	3.41%
1966	4.26%	3.44%
1967	4.26%	3.47%
1968	4.22%	3.51%
1969	4.23%	3.54%
1970	4.26%	3.58%
1971	4.31%	3.61%
1972	4.39%	3.64%
1973	4.46%	3.66%
1974	4.6%	3.69%
1975	4.74%	3.71%
1976	4.82%	3.73%
1977	4.84%	3.75%
1978	4.81%	3.77%
1979	4.75%	3.79%
1980	4.76%	3.8%
1981	4.84%	3.83%
1982	4.91%	3.86%
1983	4.97%	3.89%
1984	5.02%	3.93%
1985	5.07%	3.97%
1986	5.1%	3.98%
1987	5.13%	3.99%
1988	5.15%	3.99%
1989	5.16%	3.98%
1990	5.16%	3.95%
1991	5.05%	3.95%
1992	4.83%	3.99%
1993	4.63%	3.99%
1994	4.44%	4.05%
1995	4.27%	4.19%
1996	4.12%	4.34%
1997	3.97%	4.48%
1998	3.83%	4.59%
1999	3.71%	4.67%
2000	3.59%	4.75%
2001	3.48%	4.82%
2002	3.38%	4.88%
2003	3.29%	4.95%
2004	3.2%	5.02%
2005	3.12%	5.1%
2006	3.05%	5.15%
2007	2.98%	5.2%
2008	2.92%	5.24%
2009	2.88%	5.25%
2010	2.84%	5.25%
2011	2.81%	5.24%
2012	2.8%	5.25%
2013	2.79%	5.29%
2014	2.8%	5.33%
2015	2.82%	5.37%
2016	2.85%	5.47%
2017	2.89%	5.63%
2018	2.93%	5.78%
2019	2.98%	5.95%
2020	3.02%	6.11%
2021	3.05%	6.23%
2022	3.09%	6.36%
2023	3.14%	6.52%
2024	3.19%	6.69%
2025	3.24%	6.89%
2026	3.28%	7.08%
2027	3.32%	7.26%
2028	3.36%	7.44%
2029	3.39%	7.61%
2030	3.43%	7.76%
2031	3.47%	7.89%
2032	3.51%	8.01%
2033	3.57%	8.14%
2034	3.63%	8.26%
2035	3.71%	8.39%
2036	3.81%	8.52%
2037	3.91%	8.64%
2038	4.03%	8.76%
2039	4.15%	8.88%
2040	4.28%	9.01%
2041	4.42%	9.15%
2042	4.55%	9.3%
2043	4.68%	9.48%
2044	4.8%	9.68%
2045	4.93%	9.9%
2046	5.07%	10.1%
2047	5.22%	10.4%
2048	5.37%	10.7%
2049	5.52%	11%
2050	5.68%	11.3%

The share of older people aged 65 and over is 3.19% in Guinea-Bissau and 6.69% in South Africa. Life expectancy in Guinea-Bissau compared to South Africa .