BAGHDAD, July 12 (IANS) – The Iraqi Ministry of Planning announced that the country’s population has reached 43.32 million, with an annual growth rate of 2.5 percent.
A statement by the ministry stated that about 50.5 percent of the total population of Iraq are men and about 49.5 percent are women, according to Xinhua News Agency.
It indicated that the working age group between 15 and 64 constitutes the highest percentage, reaching 57 percent of the total population, followed by the youth group under 15 years old, with 40 percent.
The statement also stated that 70 percent of the population lives in urban areas while 30 percent lives in rural areas, adding that 50 percent live in the governorates of Baghdad, Nineveh, Basra and Dhi Qar.
In January, the ministry announced that the country’s population at the end of 2022 had exceeded 42.24 million.
Iraq used to conduct a population census every 10 years, and the last one was in 1997.
The country has not conducted any population census since the US occupation in 2003.
– Jans
ksk
