Rural population in Africa Western and Central
Africa Western and Central: Rural population was 247.88 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Rural population in Africa Western and Central, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
Africa Western and Central recorded 247.88 million for rural population in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.0% on the previous year and up 13.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Africa Western and Central peaked at 247.88 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 84.01 million, in 1960.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 89.87 million | 84.01 million | 95.94 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 105.18 million | 97.48 million | 113.86 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 126.61 million | 116.10 million | 137.51 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 152.13 million | 140.01 million | 164.94 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 182.42 million | 167.90 million | 197.63 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 216.81 million | 201.14 million | 231.70 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 241.19 million | 234.51 million | 247.88 million | 6 |
More agriculture & rural data for Africa Western and Central
- Agricultural raw materials exports 4.2% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.7% (2023)
- Rural population 46.5% (2025)
- Rural population growth 1.0% (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 21.9% (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 186.96 billion current US$ (2025)
- Land under cereal production 45.18 million hectares (2024)
- Cereal yield 1,227 kg per hectare (2024)
- Cereal production 55.44 million metric tons (2024)
- Fertilizer consumption 9.89 kilograms per hectare of arable land (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in Africa Western and Central?
- Rural population in Africa Western and Central was 247.88 million in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Africa Western and Central?
- The highest recorded value was 247.88 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Africa Western and Central?
- The lowest recorded value was 84.01 million in 1960.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Africa Western and Central?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Africa Western and Central data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
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. Aggregation of urban and rural population may not add up to total population because of different country coverages.