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Papua New Guinea
One of the world's most culturally and linguistically diverse nations, Papua New Guinea occupies the eastern half of the island of New Guinea plus hundreds of smaller islands. Over 800 languages are spoken — more than any other country. The capital Port Moresby sits on the Coral Sea coast. Much of the mountainous interior remains covered in tropical rainforest with communities living largely traditional lives.
Major cities: Port Moresby, Lae, Mount Hagen, Madang
2024
10.6M
UN
2050
14.9M
UN
2100
18.6M
UN
~2200
13.0M
GPU
~2500
3.0M
GPU
Population10.6M
Fertility (TFR)3.07
Life expectancy66.3
Median age22.3
Infant mortality32.0 per 1,000
Pop. density23/km²
Urbanization15%
Youth share (0-14)34%
Land area452,860 km²
LanguageTok Pisin
ReligionChristian
HDI0.576 (#160)
RegionOceania
Latest available year is shown in parentheses where the source series varies across indicators. Governance metrics use World Bank percentile ranks; battle deaths and military spending are context variables, not direct fertility drivers.
UN WPP 2024 — verified data through 2100
| Year | Population | TFR | Life Exp. | CBR | CDR | Net Migration | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 1.54M | 5.71 | 39.4 | 45.9 | 21.4 | -5K | 2.4% |
| 1955 | 1.74M | 5.82 | 42.6 | 46.8 | 19.4 | -1K | 2.7% |
| 1960 | 2.00M | 6.02 | 45.8 | 45.1 | 16.9 | -2K | 2.8% |
| 1965 | 2.24M | 6.20 | 48.9 | 44.6 | 14.7 | -19K | 3.0% |
| 1970 | 2.51M | 6.25 | 52.1 | 44.0 | 12.6 | -19K | 3.1% |
| 1975 | 2.81M | 6.06 | 55.0 | 41.1 | 10.6 | -24K | 3.0% |
| 1980 | 3.13M | 5.70 | 57.4 | 38.1 | 9.3 | -26K | 2.9% |
| 1985 | 3.48M | 5.47 | 58.8 | 37.7 | 8.8 | -25K | 2.9% |
| 1990 | 3.90M | 5.18 | 59.8 | 36.7 | 8.5 | +2K | 2.8% |
| 1995 | 4.64M | 4.78 | 60.9 | 35.0 | 8.0 | +41K | 2.7% |
| 2000 | 5.54M | 4.52 | 61.6 | 34.4 | 7.8 | +42K | 2.7% |
| 2005 | 6.54M | 4.22 | 61.9 | 32.8 | 7.7 | +46K | 2.5% |
| 2010 | 7.63M | 3.88 | 63.1 | 30.7 | 7.3 | +50K | 2.3% |
| 2015 | 8.74M | 3.56 | 64.5 | 28.4 | 6.8 | +31K | 2.2% |
| 2020 | 9.82M | 3.27 | 65.1 | 26.1 | 6.8 | +11K | 1.9% |
| 2024Now | 10.6M | 3.07 | 66.3 | 24.3 | 6.6 | -1K | 1.8% |
| 2025 | 10.8M | 3.03 | 66.4 | 23.9 | 6.6 | -0K | 1.7% |
| 2030 | 11.7M | 2.84 | 67.0 | 22.2 | 6.9 | -1K | 1.5% |
| 2035 | 12.5M | 2.70 | 67.6 | 21.0 | 7.2 | -3K | 1.4% |
| 2040 | 13.4M | 2.56 | 68.2 | 19.9 | 7.6 | -2K | 1.2% |
| 2045 | 14.2M | 2.46 | 68.7 | 19.0 | 8.1 | 0K | 1.1% |
| 2050 | 14.9M | 2.36 | 69.2 | 18.1 | 8.5 | -2K | 1.0% |
| 2055 | 15.6M | 2.28 | 69.7 | 17.1 | 8.9 | -1K | 0.8% |
| 2060 | 16.2M | 2.21 | 70.3 | 16.3 | 9.4 | +3K | 0.7% |
| 2065 | 16.7M | 2.15 | 70.8 | 15.6 | 9.8 | +4K | 0.6% |
| 2070 | 17.2M | 2.10 | 71.3 | 15.0 | 10.1 | +2K | 0.5% |
| 2075 | 17.6M | 2.04 | 71.9 | 14.5 | 10.5 | +1K | 0.4% |
| 2080 | 17.9M | 2.01 | 72.4 | 14.0 | 10.8 | +7K | 0.3% |
| 2085 | 18.2M | 1.98 | 73.0 | 13.6 | 11.0 | +4K | 0.3% |
| 2090 | 18.4M | 1.94 | 73.6 | 13.1 | 11.3 | +6K | 0.2% |
| 2095 | 18.6M | 1.91 | 74.2 | 12.7 | 11.5 | +1K | 0.1% |
| 2100 | 18.6M | 1.88 | 74.8 | 12.3 | 11.7 | -1K | 0.1% |