Rural population in South Sudan
South Sudan: Rural population was 78.4% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
78.4%
Change on year
down 0.5%
World rank
10th
of 214 countries
All-time high
91.5%
in 1982
All-time low
78.4%
in 2024
Years of data
55
1970–2024
Rural population in South Sudan, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in % of total population.
Analysis
In 2024, rural population in South Sudan stood at 78.4%. That is the lowest value across all 55 years on record.
The figure is down 0.5% on the previous year and down 3.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in South Sudan peaked at 91.5% in 1982 and was at its lowest, 78.4%, in 2024.
That places South Sudan 10th out of 214 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 55 years of available data.
Rural population in South Sudan, year by year
| Year | % of total population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 91.4% | — |
| 1971 | 91.4% | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 91.4% | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 91.4% | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 91.4% | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 91.4% | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 91.4% | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 91.4% | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 91.5% | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 91.5% | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 91.5% | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 91.5% | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 91.5% | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 91.3% | -0.2% |
| 1984 | 90.7% | -0.6% |
| 1985 | 90.2% | -0.6% |
| 1986 | 89.5% | -0.7% |
| 1987 | 88.9% | -0.7% |
| 1988 | 88.2% | -0.8% |
| 1989 | 87.5% | -0.8% |
| 1990 | 86.7% | -0.9% |
| 1991 | 85.9% | -0.9% |
| 1992 | 85.1% | -1.0% |
| 1993 | 84.4% | -0.8% |
| 1994 | 84.3% | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 84.1% | -0.1% |
| 1996 | 84.0% | -0.1% |
| 1997 | 83.9% | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 83.8% | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 83.6% | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 83.5% | -0.2% |
| 2001 | 83.4% | -0.2% |
| 2002 | 83.2% | -0.2% |
| 2003 | 83.1% | -0.2% |
| 2004 | 83.0% | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 82.8% | -0.2% |
| 2006 | 82.7% | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 82.6% | -0.2% |
| 2008 | 82.4% | -0.2% |
| 2009 | 82.3% | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 82.1% | -0.2% |
| 2011 | 82.0% | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 81.8% | -0.2% |
| 2013 | 81.6% | -0.2% |
| 2014 | 81.4% | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 81.1% | -0.3% |
| 2016 | 80.9% | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 80.7% | -0.3% |
| 2018 | 80.4% | -0.3% |
| 2019 | 80.1% | -0.4% |
| 2020 | 79.8% | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 79.5% | -0.4% |
| 2022 | 79.2% | -0.4% |
| 2023 | 78.8% | -0.4% |
| 2024 | 78.4% | -0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 91.4% | 91.4% | 91.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 90.1% | 87.5% | 91.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 84.6% | 83.6% | 86.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 82.9% | 82.3% | 83.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 81.2% | 80.1% | 82.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 79.1% | 78.4% | 79.8% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Sudan
More population data for South Sudan
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate 0.0243 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate 0.4787 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate 0.0243 % change on previous year (2100)
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate 0.0933 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 05 - Demographic estimates 17,461 Persons (2050)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 1.92 Percent per annum (2030)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.5193 % change on previous year (2100)
- World population growth 0.0% (2100)
- Population density 37.73 people per km² (2100)
- Number of children under 5, by world region 1.57 million people (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in South Sudan?
- Rural population in South Sudan was 78.4% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest rural population recorded in South Sudan?
- The highest recorded value was 91.5% in 1982.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in South Sudan?
- The lowest recorded value was 78.4% in 2024.
- How does South Sudan rank for rural population?
- South Sudan ranks 10th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
- Is rural population rising or falling in South Sudan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Sudan data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Rural population (% of total population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 55 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release