Nationality:
noun: Sahrawi(s), Sahraoui(s)
adjective: Sahrawi, Sahrawian, Sahraouian

Ethnic groups:
Arab, Berber

Languages:
Standard Arabic (national), Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic

Religions:
Muslim

Population:
570,866 (July 2013 est.)
note: estimate is based on projections by age, sex, fertility, mortality, and migration; fertility and mortality are based on data from neighboring countries (July 2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 172
[see also: Population country ranks ]

Age structure:
0-14 years: 37.83% (male 109,147/female 106,789)
[see also: Age structure 0-14 years country ranks ]
15-24 years: 19.63% (male 56,412/female 55,624)
[see also: Age structure 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 33.93% (male 95,296/female 98,391)
[see also: Age structure 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 4.87% (male 12,974/female 14,829)
[see also: Age structure 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 3.75% (male 9,406/female 11,998) (2015 est.)
[see also: Age structure 65 years and over country ranks ]
population pyramid:
A population pyramid illustrates the age and sex structure of a country's population and may provide insights about political and social stability, as well as economic development. The population is distributed along the horizontal axis, with males shown on the left and females on the right. The male and female populations are broken down into 5-year age groups represented as horizontal bars along the vertical axis, with the youngest age groups at the bottom and the oldest at the top. The shape of the population pyramid gradually evolves over time based on fertility, mortality, and international migration trends.

For additional information, please see the entry for Population pyramid on the Definitions and Notes page under the References tab.

Dependency ratios:
total dependency ratio: 40.2%
[see also: Dependency ratios - total dependency ratio country ranks ]
youth dependency ratio: 36.1%
[see also: Dependency ratios - youth dependency ratio country ranks ]
elderly dependency ratio: 4.1%
[see also: Dependency ratios - elderly dependency ratio country ranks ]
potential support ratio: 24.4% (2015 est.)
[see also: Dependency ratios - potential support ratio country ranks ]

Median age:
total: 20.9 years
[see also: Median age - total country ranks ]
male: 20.5 years
[see also: Median age - male country ranks ]
female: 21.4 years (2015 est.)
[see also: Median age - female country ranks ]

Population growth rate:
2.82% (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 12
[see also: Population growth rate country ranks ]

Birth rate:
30.24 births/1,000 population (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 40
[see also: Birth rate country ranks ]

Death rate:
8.34 deaths/1,000 population (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 84
[see also: Death rate country ranks ]

Urbanization:
urban population: 80.9% of total population (2015)
[see also: Urbanization - urban population country ranks ]
rate of urbanization: 3.27% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
[see also: Urbanization - rate of urbanization country ranks ]

Major urban areas - population:
Laayoune 262,000 (2014)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - at birth country ranks ]
0-14 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 0-14 years country ranks ]
15-24 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 15-24 years country ranks ]
25-54 years: 0.97 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 25-54 years country ranks ]
55-64 years: 0.88 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 55-64 years country ranks ]
65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female
[see also: Sex ratio - 65 years and over country ranks ]
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2015 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 54.7 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - total country ranks ]
male: 59.61 deaths/1,000 live births
[see also: Infant mortality rate - male country ranks ]
female: 49.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2015 est.)
[see also: Infant mortality rate - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 27

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 62.64 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - total country ranks ]
male: 60.35 years
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - male country ranks ]
female: 65.02 years (2015 est.)
[see also: Life expectancy at birth - female country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 190

Total fertility rate:
4 children born/woman (2015 est.)
country comparison to the world: 38
[see also: Total fertility rate country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA
[see also: HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA
[see also: HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS country ranks ]

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA
[see also: HIV/AIDS - deaths country ranks ]