Rural population growth in Congo

Congo: Rural population growth was 1.7% in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
1.7%
Change on year
down 4.2%
World rank
28th
of 207 countries
All-time high
3.7%
in 2010
All-time low
-0.6%
in 1981
Years of data
65
1961–2025

Rural population growth in Congo, 1961–2025

-101234196119932025

Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.

Analysis

In 2025, rural population growth in Congo stood at 1.7%.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.2% on the previous year and down 17.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, rural population growth in Congo peaked at 3.7% in 2010 and was at its lowest, -0.6%, in 1981.

That places Congo 28th out of 207 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 65 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 2.5% 2.1% 2.6% 9
1970s 1.5% -0.4% 2.6% 10
1980s 0.8% -0.6% 2.0% 10
1990s 1.8% 1.0% 2.2% 10
2000s 2.5% 1.0% 3.5% 10
2010s 2.4% 2.0% 3.7% 10
2020s 2.1% 1.7% 2.4% 6

Countries ranked near Congo

  1. 25 Uganda 1.7% compare
  2. 26 Tanzania 1.7% compare
  3. 27 Belize 1.7% compare
  4. 29 Madagascar 1.7% compare
  5. 30 South Sudan 1.6% compare
  6. 31 Equatorial Guinea 1.6% compare

See the full ranking of 256 places →

More agriculture & rural data for Congo

All data for Congo →

Frequently asked questions

What is rural population growth in Congo?
Rural population growth in Congo was 1.7% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
What is the highest rural population growth recorded in Congo?
The highest recorded value was 3.7% in 2010.
What is the lowest rural population growth recorded in Congo?
The lowest recorded value was -0.6% in 1981.
How does Congo rank for rural population growth?
Congo ranks 28th out of 207 countries with data for 2025.
Is rural population growth rising or falling in Congo?
Over the last ten years it is down 17.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Congo data come from?
The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population growth (annual %). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

About this data

Indicator
Rural population growth (annual %)
Unit
annual %
Source
World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
256 places, 16,517 data points, 1961–2025
Last refreshed

Annual rural population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear rural population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage. Rural population refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population.