Benin’s demographic profile combines a young population, rapid population growth, high fertility, and a population that is now roughly split between urban and rural areas. The figures below bring together national indicators from UNICEF, contemporary demographic estimates from several population reference sites, and a historical 2002 rural-age excerpt. Dates and definitions are kept with each statistic because the measures are not all from the same year.
Contents
- Population and growth
- Age structure and dependency
- Births, fertility, and life expectancy
- Urbanization and migration
- Child survival and health
- Child welfare and protection
- Nutrition, vaccination, and sanitation
Population and growth
The UNICEF Benin country profile lists Benin’s population at 14,814,460 persons. UNICEF’s 2025 Statistical Compendium gives a separate 2024 estimate of 14,463 thousand, or about 14.463 million. These are different population figures attached to different source products and measurement contexts, so they should not be treated as a single exact count.
The same UNICEF compendium reports an annual population growth rate of 3.1%. At that rate, the size of the population changes quickly over time, which helps explain why population references can show different totals depending on their reference date. Worldometer’s Benin Population 2026 page describes the current population as about 15.1 million as of April 14, 2026. That is a dated estimate, rather than a census total.
UNICEF’s 2025 Statistical Compendium also records 483 thousand annual births in 2024. Together, the growth rate and birth total indicate a country adding a substantial number of people each year. The figures are useful for understanding demand for public services, but they should be read alongside the age structure and mortality indicators below.
For a compact view of the principal population measures, the source and period matter as much as the number:
| Measure | Figure | Source or period |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 14,814,460 persons | UNICEF Benin country profile |
| Population estimate | 14,463 thousand | UNICEF Statistical Compendium, 2024 |
| Current population | About 15.1 million | Worldometer, April 14, 2026 |
| Annual population growth | 3.1% | UNICEF Statistical Compendium |
| Annual births | 483 thousand | UNICEF Statistical Compendium, 2024 |
Age structure and dependency
Benin’s population is young by the measures supplied. WorldStats’ Benin Population 2026 page reports that 41.5% of the population is under age 15. Worldometer’s Benin Demographics 2024 page gives a median age of 17.9 years. A median age below 18 means that half of the population is younger than 17.9 years under that source’s estimate; it is a population-structure measure, not an average age.
The UNICEF Statistical Compendium reports a total dependency ratio of 81%. It gives a child dependency ratio of 75% and an old-age dependency ratio of 6%. These components describe the number of dependents relative to the working-age population under the compendium’s definition. The particularly large child component is consistent with the country’s young median age and high share of people under 15.
WorldStats separately reports that 3.1% of Benin’s population is over age 65. This percentage is not interchangeable with the UNICEF old-age dependency ratio: one measures a population share, while the other expresses a dependency relationship. Keeping those definitions separate is important when comparing demographic profiles.
The historical RGPH2/TOME1 excerpt gives additional context for rural age structure in 2002. In that excerpt, 49.8% of Benin’s rural population was under age 15, the rural median age was 15.1 years, and the rural age-dependency ratio was 1.3 inactive persons per active person. Those are historical rural figures from 2002 and should not be read as current national estimates.
Births, fertility, and life expectancy
Fertility remains high in the supplied demographic estimates. UNICEF’s Statistical Compendium reports a total fertility rate of 4.5 live births per woman. Population Stat’s Benin Population 2026 page reports 4.35 births per woman. The two values come from different reference products, so the small difference reflects source and period differences rather than a supported trend calculated here.
WorldStats’ Benin Population 2026 page reports a birth rate of 33.9 births per 1,000 population and a death rate of 8.8 deaths per 1,000 population. These are crude rates, meaning they relate births and deaths to the total population rather than adjusting for age composition. They should therefore be interpreted alongside Benin’s unusually young population.
Life expectancy is listed as 61 years in the UNICEF Statistical Compendium. WorldStats’ Benin Population 2026 page gives 60.8 years. As with fertility, the figures are close but belong to separate source products. Neither should be presented as a precise individual lifespan; life expectancy is a population-level period measure.
The UNICEF Benin country profile provides more detail on mortality early in life. Infant mortality is 45 deaths per 1,000 live births, while neonatal mortality is 27 deaths per 1,000 live births. The under-five mortality rate is 74.7 deaths per 1,000 live births. UNICEF also records 35,304 under-five deaths.
The country profile reports a difference by sex in under-five mortality: 69 deaths per 1,000 live births for girls and 80 deaths per 1,000 live births for boys. These sex-specific rates are presented as source figures; no additional gap or percentage has been calculated.
Urbanization and migration
The UNICEF Statistical Compendium reports that 51% of Benin’s population is urban and that the annual urban population growth rate is 3.9%. The urban growth rate is higher than the overall annual population growth rate of 3.1%, indicating faster growth in the urban measure in the compendium’s reporting framework.
Worldometer’s Benin Demographics 2024 page gives a separate urban estimate: 47.2% of the population, equal to 6,820,688 people. This differs from the UNICEF compendium’s 51% share because the estimates come from different products and periods. The figures should be used as source-specific estimates, not combined into an unsupported average.
UNICEF’s Statistical Compendium reports a net migration rate of -0.5 per 1,000 population. The negative sign indicates net outward movement under that measure: the reported number of people leaving exceeds the number entering by the stated rate. It does not identify individual migration routes or explain the reasons for movement.
For readers using demographic information while planning travel-document research, these distinctions are practical. A current population estimate, an urban share, and a migration rate answer different questions. None of them is a substitute for an official document requirement, border rule, or consular instruction.
Child survival and health
The UNICEF Benin country profile reports that 63% of surviving infants received the third dose of a DTP-containing vaccine. It also records a C-section rate of 6% of deliveries. Early initiation of breastfeeding is 25%, while exclusive breastfeeding among infants aged 0–5 months is 45%.
Care and treatment indicators show further differences in coverage. Careseeking for acute respiratory infection symptoms among children under age 5 is 35%. Diarrhoea treatment with oral rehydration salts, or ORS, among children under age 5 is 15%. ITN use by children under age 5 is 50%, and 58% of households have at least one insecticide-treated mosquito net.
These indicators measure distinct steps. Household possession of a mosquito net is not the same as a child’s reported use of an ITN. Likewise, careseeking for respiratory symptoms and ORS treatment for diarrhoea describe different conditions and should not be added together or interpreted as a single health-service coverage rate.
The profile also reports that 93% of children under age 5 have their births registered. Birth registration is an administrative and civil-status indicator, distinct from vaccination, treatment, or survival outcomes. Its high reported coverage sits alongside lower values for several health-service indicators, illustrating why a demographic profile needs multiple measures rather than one headline percentage.
Child welfare and protection
The UNICEF Benin country profile reports that 20% of children aged 5–17 years are engaged in child labour. It also reports that 88% of children aged 1–14 experienced physical punishment and/or psychological aggression by caregivers. These age bands and definitions are part of the measures and should be retained when comparing them with other sources.
Marriage and gender-related indicators provide additional context. UNICEF reports that 28% of women aged 20–24 were married or in union before age 18. It also reports that 29% of women aged 15–49 consider wife-beating justified for at least one stated reason.
The same UNICEF country profile reports that 9% of girls and women aged 15–49 have undergone female genital mutilation. The figure is a prevalence measure for the specified age range; it is not a count of all girls and women in Benin and should not be converted into one without a matching population denominator.
Taken together, these measures describe exposure to work, violence, early union, attitudes, and harmful practices. They are not interchangeable and do not establish causes. Their value is in showing the separate dimensions of child and gender-related wellbeing that sit alongside population growth and health statistics.
Nutrition, vaccination, and sanitation
The UNICEF Benin country profile reports a stunting prevalence of 33%. Stunting is presented here exactly as the source labels it; the supplied figure does not include a separate definition, measurement year, or breakdown by location, sex, or wealth group.
Vitamin A supplementation two-dose coverage is 7%. Iodized salt consumption among tested households is 83%. The two percentages use different units of observation: the first concerns supplementation coverage, while the second concerns tested households. They should not be ranked as if they measure the same intervention.
Sanitation coverage is reported through three related but distinct figures. Safely managed sanitation services reach 16% of the population. Basic sanitation services reach 6% of the population. At least basic sanitation services reach 22% of the population. Because the labels describe different service categories, the percentages should be retained as separate UNICEF country-profile indicators rather than summed.
The sanitation figures add an infrastructure dimension to Benin’s demographic profile. Population size and urbanization describe where people live and how the population changes; sanitation, vaccination, nutrition, treatment, and registration figures describe selected conditions affecting households and children. Each statistic remains tied to its stated source, age group, denominator, and period.