Brazil: People & Society#
| Population | 205,823,665 (July 2016 est.) |
|---|---|
| Nationality | noun: Brazilian(s) adjective: Brazilian |
| Ethnic groups | white 47.7%, mulatto (mixed white and black) 43.1%, black 7.6%, Asian 1.1%, indigenous 0.4% (2010 est.) |
| Languages | Portuguese (official and most widely spoken language) note: less common languages include Spanish (border areas and schools), German, Italian, Japanese, English, and a large number of minor Amerindian languages |
| Religions | Roman Catholic 64.6%, other Catholic 0.4%, Protestant 22.2% (includes Adventist 6.5%, Assembly of God 2.0%, Christian Congregation of Brazil 1.2%, Universal Kingdom of God 1.0%, other Protestant 11.5%), other Christian 0.7%, Spiritist 2.2%, other 1.4%, none 8%, unspecified 0.4% (2010 est.) |
| Demographic profile | Brazil's rapid fertility decline since the 1960s is the main factor behind the country's slowing population growth rate, aging population, and fast-paced demographic transition. Brasilia has not taken full advantage of its large working-age population to develop its human capital and strengthen its social and economic institutions but is funding a study abroad program to bring advanced skills back to the country. The current favorable age structure will begin to shift around 2025, with the labor force shrinking and the elderly starting to compose an increasing share of the total population. Well-funded public pensions have nearly wiped out poverty among the elderly, and Bolsa Familia and other social programs have lifted tens of millions out of poverty. More than half of Brazil's population is considered middle class, but poverty and income inequality levels remain high; the Northeast, North, and Center-West, women, and black, mixed race, and indigenous populations are disproportionately affected. Disparities in opportunities foster social exclusion and contribute to Brazil's high crime rate, particularly violent crime in cities and favelas. Brazil has traditionally been a net recipient of immigrants, with its southeast being the prime destination. After the importation of African slaves was outlawed in the mid-19th century, Brazil sought Europeans (Italians, Portuguese, Spaniards, and Germans) and later Asians (Japanese) to work in agriculture, especially coffee cultivation. Recent immigrants come mainly from Argentina, Chile, and Andean countries (many are unskilled illegal migrants) or are returning Brazilian nationals. Since Brazil's economic downturn in the 1980s, emigration to the United States, Europe, and Japan has been rising but is negligible relative to Brazil's total population. The majority of these emigrants are well-educated and middle-class. Fewer Brazilian peasants are emigrating to neighboring countries to take up agricultural work. |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 22.79% (male 23,905,185/female 22,994,222) 15-24 years: 16.43% (male 17,146,060/female 16,661,163) 25-54 years: 43.84% (male 44,750,568/female 45,489,430) 55-64 years: 8.89% (male 8,637,011/female 9,656,370) 65 years and over: 8.06% (male 7,059,944/female 9,523,712) (2016 est.) |
| Dependency ratios | total dependency ratio: 44.7% youth dependency ratio: 33.3% elderly dependency ratio: 11.3% potential support ratio: 8.8% (2015 est.) |
| Median age | total: 31.6 years male: 30.7 years female: 32.4 years (2016 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.75% (2016 est.) |
| Birth rate | 14.3 births/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Death rate | 6.6 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Net migration rate | -0.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Population distribution | the vast majority of people live along, or relatively near, the Atlantic coast in the east; the population core is in the southeast, anchored by the cities of Sao Paolo, Brazilia, and Rio de Janeiro |
| Urbanization | urban population: 85.7% of total population (2015) rate of urbanization: 1.17% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.) |
| Major urban areas - population | Sao Paulo 21.066 million; Rio de Janeiro 12.902 million; Belo Horizonte 5.716 million; BRASILIA (capital) 4.155 million; Fortaleza 3.88 million; Recife 3.739 million (2015) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 0.89 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2016 est.) |
| Maternal mortality rate | 44 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 18 deaths/1,000 live births male: 21.2 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.8 years male: 70.2 years female: 77.5 years (2016 est.) |
| Total fertility rate | 1.76 children born/woman (2016 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | 80.3% (2006) |
| Health expenditures | 8.3% of GDP (2014) |
| Physicians density | 1.89 physicians/1,000 population (2013) |
| Hospital bed density | 2.3 beds/1,000 population (2012) |
| Drinking water source | improved: urban: 100% of population rural: 87% of population total: 98.1% of population unimproved: urban: 0% of population rural: 13% of population total: 1.9% of population (2015 est.) |
| Sanitation facility access | improved: urban: 88% of population rural: 51.5% of population total: 82.8% of population unimproved: urban: 12% of population rural: 48.5% of population total: 17.2% of population (2015 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate | 0.58% (2015 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | 826,700 (2015 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths | 15,300 (2015 est.) |
| Major infectious diseases | degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea and hepatitis A vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria water contact disease: schistosomiasis 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 | 20.1% (2014) |
| Children under the age of 5 years underweight | 2.2% (2007) |
| Education expenditures | 6% of GDP (2013) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 92.6% male: 92.2% female: 92.9% (2015 est.) |
| School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) | total: 15 years male: 15 years female: 16 years (2013) |
| Child labor - children ages 5-14 | total number: 959,942 percentage: 3% note: data represent children ages 5-13 (2009 est.) |
| Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 | total: 15% male: 12.3% female: 18.7% (2013 est.) |