Age dependency ratio in Arab World
Arab World: Age dependency ratio was 59.6% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Age dependency ratio in Arab World, 1960–2025
Source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division. Measured in % of working-age population.
Analysis
Arab World recorded 59.6% for age dependency ratio in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of down 1.0% on the previous year and down 6.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age dependency ratio in Arab World peaked at 93.9% in 1976 and was at its lowest, 59.6%, in 2025.
Arab World ranks 17th of 45 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Age dependency ratio in Arab World, year by year
| Year | % of working-age population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 88.6% | — |
| 1961 | 89.5% | +1.0% |
| 1962 | 90.3% | +0.9% |
| 1963 | 91.2% | +0.9% |
| 1964 | 91.9% | +0.8% |
| 1965 | 92.5% | +0.7% |
| 1966 | 93.1% | +0.6% |
| 1967 | 93.4% | +0.4% |
| 1968 | 93.6% | +0.2% |
| 1969 | 93.6% | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 93.7% | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 93.7% | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 93.7% | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 93.8% | +0.1% |
| 1974 | 93.8% | -0.0% |
| 1975 | 93.8% | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 93.9% | +0.1% |
| 1977 | 93.7% | -0.2% |
| 1978 | 93.2% | -0.6% |
| 1979 | 92.6% | -0.6% |
| 1980 | 92.1% | -0.6% |
| 1981 | 91.6% | -0.5% |
| 1982 | 91.1% | -0.5% |
| 1983 | 90.6% | -0.6% |
| 1984 | 90.1% | -0.6% |
| 1985 | 89.6% | -0.6% |
| 1986 | 89.1% | -0.6% |
| 1987 | 88.5% | -0.6% |
| 1988 | 87.9% | -0.7% |
| 1989 | 87.3% | -0.7% |
| 1990 | 86.6% | -0.8% |
| 1991 | 85.6% | -1.2% |
| 1992 | 84.6% | -1.2% |
| 1993 | 83.6% | -1.1% |
| 1994 | 82.6% | -1.2% |
| 1995 | 81.5% | -1.3% |
| 1996 | 80.4% | -1.4% |
| 1997 | 79.2% | -1.5% |
| 1998 | 77.8% | -1.7% |
| 1999 | 76.4% | -1.8% |
| 2000 | 75.1% | -1.8% |
| 2001 | 73.7% | -1.8% |
| 2002 | 72.4% | -1.8% |
| 2003 | 71.1% | -1.8% |
| 2004 | 69.8% | -1.8% |
| 2005 | 68.6% | -1.7% |
| 2006 | 67.4% | -1.8% |
| 2007 | 66.1% | -1.9% |
| 2008 | 65.1% | -1.5% |
| 2009 | 64.4% | -1.1% |
| 2010 | 64.0% | -0.6% |
| 2011 | 63.6% | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 63.4% | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 63.4% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 63.6% | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 63.5% | -0.0% |
| 2016 | 63.4% | -0.2% |
| 2017 | 63.3% | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 63.3% | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 63.1% | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 62.7% | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 62.4% | -0.5% |
| 2022 | 61.7% | -1.2% |
| 2023 | 60.9% | -1.3% |
| 2024 | 60.2% | -1.1% |
| 2025 | 59.6% | -1.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 91.8% | 88.6% | 93.6% | 10 |
| 1970s | 93.6% | 92.6% | 93.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 89.8% | 87.3% | 92.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 81.8% | 76.4% | 86.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 69.4% | 64.4% | 75.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 63.5% | 63.1% | 64.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 61.2% | 59.6% | 62.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Arab World
More health data for Arab World
- Population ages 0-14, female, annual growth rate 1.03 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, male, annual growth rate 2.65 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, female, per capita 0.3003 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, female, annual growth rate 2.52 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total, per capita 0.3196 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 15-64, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total, annual growth rate 1.01 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per capita 0.1632 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age dependency ratio in Arab World?
- Age dependency ratio in Arab World was 59.6% in 2025, according to World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division.
- What is the highest age dependency ratio recorded in Arab World?
- The highest recorded value was 93.9% in 1976.
- What is the lowest age dependency ratio recorded in Arab World?
- The lowest recorded value was 59.6% in 2025.
- How does Arab World rank for age dependency ratio?
- Arab World ranks 17th out of 45 groups with data for 2025.
- Is age dependency ratio rising or falling in Arab World?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Arab World data come from?
- The figures come from World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division, published as part of Age dependency ratio (% of working-age population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Age dependency ratio is the ratio of dependents--people younger than 15 or older than 64--to the working-age population--those ages 15-64. Data are shown as the proportion of dependents per 100 working-age population.