Argentina: People & Society#
| Population | 43,886,748 (July 2016 est.) |
|---|---|
| Nationality | noun: Argentine(s) adjective: Argentine |
| Ethnic groups | white (mostly Spanish and Italian) 97%, mestizo (mixed white and Amerindian ancestry), Amerindian, or other non-white groups 3% |
| Languages | Spanish (official), Italian, English, German, French, indigenous (Mapudungun, Quechua) |
| Religions | nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4% |
| Demographic profile | Argentina's population continues to grow but at a slower rate because of its steadily declining birth rate. Argentina's fertility decline began earlier than in the rest of Latin America, occurring most rapidly between the early 20th century and the 1950s and then becoming more gradual. Life expectancy has been improving, most notably among the young and the poor. While the population under age 15 is shrinking, the youth cohort - ages 15-24 - is the largest in Argentina's history and will continue to bolster the working-age population. If this large working-age population is well-educated and gainfully employed, Argentina is likely to experience an economic boost and possibly higher per capita savings and investment. Although literacy and primary school enrollment are nearly universal, grade repetition is problematic and secondary school completion is low. Both of these issues vary widely by region and socioeconomic group. Argentina has been primarily a country of immigration for most of its history, welcoming European immigrants after its independence in the 19th century and attracting especially large numbers from Spain and Italy. European immigration diminished in the 1950s, when Argentina's military dictatorships tightened immigration rules and European economies rebounded. Regional migration, however, continued to supply low-skilled workers and today it accounts for three-quarters of Argentina's immigrant population. The first waves of highly skilled Argentine emigrant workers headed mainly to the United States and Spain in the 1960s and 1970s. The 2008 European economic crisis drove the return migration of some Argentinean and other Latin American nationals, as well as the immigration of Europeans to South America, where Argentina was a key recipient. |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 24.72% (male 5,590,165/female 5,259,163) 15-24 years: 15.43% (male 3,461,288/female 3,312,056) 25-54 years: 39.24% (male 8,593,500/female 8,627,846) 55-64 years: 9.14% (male 1,948,179/female 2,064,463) 65 years and over: 11.46% (male 2,104,830/female 2,925,258) (2016 est.) |
| Dependency ratios | total dependency ratio: 56.5% youth dependency ratio: 39.4% elderly dependency ratio: 17.1% potential support ratio: 5.8% (2015 est.) |
| Median age | total: 31.5 years male: 30.3 years female: 32.7 years (2016 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.93% (2016 est.) |
| Birth rate | 17 births/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Death rate | 7.5 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Net migration rate | -0.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Population distribution | one-third of the population lives in Buenos Aires; pockets of agglomeration occur throughout the northern and central parts of the country; Patagonia to the south remains sparsely populated |
| Urbanization | urban population: 91.8% of total population (2015) rate of urbanization: 1.04% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.) |
| Major urban areas - population | BUENOS AIRES (capital) 15.18 million; Cordoba 1.511 million; Rosario 1.381 million; Mendoza 1.009 million; San Miguel de Tucuman 910,000; La Plata 846,000 (2015) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 1 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2016 est.) |
| Maternal mortality rate | 52 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 10.1 deaths/1,000 live births male: 11 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.1 years male: 74 years female: 80.4 years (2016 est.) |
| Total fertility rate | 2.28 children born/woman (2016 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | 78.9% (2004/05) |
| Health expenditures | 4.8% of GDP (2014) |
| Physicians density | 3.86 physicians/1,000 population (2013) |
| Hospital bed density | 4.7 beds/1,000 population (2012) |
| Drinking water source | improved: urban: 99% of population rural: 100% of population total: 99.1% of population unimproved: urban: 1% of population rural: 0% of population total: 0.9% of population (2015 est.) |
| Sanitation facility access | improved: urban: 96.2% of population rural: 98.3% of population total: 96.4% of population unimproved: urban: 3.8% of population rural: 1.7% of population total: 3.6% of population (2015 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate | 0.39% (2015 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | 109,700 (2015 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths | 2,300 (2015 est.) |
| Major infectious diseases | note: active local transmission of Zika virus by Aedes species mosquitoes has been identified in this country (as of August 2016); it poses an important risk (a large number of cases possible) among US citizens if bitten by an infective mosquito; other less common ways to get Zika are through sex, via blood transfusion, or during pregnancy, in which the pregnant woman passes Zika virus to her fetus (2016) |
| Obesity - adult prevalence rate | 26.5% (2014) |
| Children under the age of 5 years underweight | 2.3% (2005) |
| Education expenditures | 5.5% of GDP (2014) |
| Literacy | definition: age 10 and over can read and write total population: 98.1% male: 98% female: 98.1% (2015 est.) |
| School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) | total: 17 years male: 16 years female: 18 years (2013) |
| Child labor - children ages 5-14 | total number: 435,252 percentage: 7% note: data represent children ages 5-13 (2003 est.) |
| Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 | total: 18.8% male: 16.7% female: 22.4% (2014 est.) |