• History
• Geopolitical Overview
• Geography & Climate
• Demographics


• Political Environment
• Government
• Conflict with Armenia
• Foreign Policy
• Bilateral Relations


• Economic Indicators
• Foreign Trade
• Privatization
• Legal Environment
• Tax Regime
• Customs
• Banking Sector
• Financing & Insurance


• Historical Overview
• Caspian Basin Issues
• Oil & Gas Potential
• Transportation
• Oil & Gas Agreements
• Natural Gas
• Other


• Agriculture
• Industry


• General Issues
• Key Contacts
• Travel
• Services
• Links




Demographics

Population and Demographics, 2000
Gregory Twyman, Monmouth University 

Azerbaijan has a population of approximately 8,113,000 million (it is difficult to measure due to the massive influx of refugees, displaced by the conflict in Karabakh and surrounding areas, estimated at over one million).


 

Population              2000

Total population         8,113,000 

Urban                       51% 
Rural                        49% 
Males                       49% 
Females                   51% 

Source:     State Committee on Statistics 

The Age Structure of Azerbaijan's Population is as Follows:

Children and Youth up to 15 years old                                              32%
Labor Force (Men between 16 - 62, women between 16 - 57)             59%
Retired                                                                                          9%

The population's growth rate in the first 6 months of 2001 was 0.4%, or 32,000 people. By the year 2026 the country's population is projected to exceed 10 million. Life expectancy in Azerbaijan is 71.6, up slightly from the 1960 life expectancy of 70.9.


Sources: State Committee on Statistics, CIA World Fact Book 2001.

An old Azeri man

Azerbaijan has 76 administrative divisions, 11 cities, including 8 with a population over 50,000 and two territories of special status: Nakhichevan and Karabakh. Slightly over half the population resides in urban areas. Population density was 93 people per sq. km in 2000. Azerbaijanis share cultural and historical links with Turkey and Iran, speak a Turkic language (Azerbaijani) and overwhelmingly worship Islam. There are 120,700 Christian Armenians living in Azerbaijan, including the population of the Karabakh region and surrounding areas.

Religions:

Muslim                                        93.4% 
Russian Orthodox                         2.5% 
Armenian Orthodox                       2.3% 
Other                                           2.3% 

Ethnic Groups:

Azerbaijani                                     90% 
Dagestani                                     3.2% 
Russian                                      21.8% 
Armenian                                      1.5% 
Jews                                            .01% 
Kurds                                           0.2% 
Lezghi                                          2.2% 
Talysh                                          1.0% 
Avars                                            0.6% 
Tatars                                           0.4% 
Georgians                                     0.2% 
Others                                          .25% 

2001 Estimate Sources: State Committee on Statistics, CIA World Fact Book

Population Projection (2000) by gender:

Gender            1985      1990        1995         2000         2005

Total M+F        6,669    7,218.5     7,726.2    8,081.0      8,425
Males              3,252    3,524        3,802.7    3,954.5      4,111
Females          3,417    3,694.4      3,923      4,126.5      4,314

Sources:   State Committee on Statistics, World Bank 

Education
Azerbaijani education level is high, with a mean education of eleven years for males and females. While there has been a substantial increase in high school education during the past five years, there has been a slight decline in technical and university graduations. 

Level in %                                   1993             1998
Illiterate                                         3.6                2.1
Elementary School                       12.4                6.7
High School Graduate                   28.4               43.5
Technical School Graduate            27.0               23.4
University Graduate                       28.1               23.5
Post Graduate                               -                    0.8

Sources:    Siar International, CIA World Fact Book and State Committee on Statistics 

Employment
Recent surveys reflect 59% of the population or some 4,786,670 people of working age (16-62), and reported employment of 3,829,336 people in 2000. Recent available figures indicate unemployment levels of approximately 20%. The large number of refugees and displaced persons of working age now in Azerbaijan no doubt have a considerable impact on unemployment figures as they are less likely to be employed than natives.

Fountain Square

Several sources have indicated that Azerbaijan's agricultural sector continues to claim the largest number of employees with 30.8%. Azerbaijan's economy is still in transition from state control. Figures reflect that the government employs over 20% of the working population. These numbers will decrease in proportion to successful privatization of Azerbaijan's state-run enterprises. 

Employment by Sectors:                                                  %

Agriculture                                                                       30.8
Trade, Catering, Material Supply and Procurement              18.9
Mining and Manufacturing                                                  6.8
Health Care, Social Security, Physical Culture                    4.9
Transport, Communications                                               4.5
Education, Culture and Art                                                10.2 
Construction                                                                     4.2
Housing, Public Utilities and Personal Services                    4.3 
General Administration                                                      1.8 
Science and Research                                                      .08 
Credit Finance and Insurance                                             .03 
Other Sectors                                                                  12.8 

Sources:    Sources: State Committee on Statistics, Bisnis Country Reports, CIA World Fact Book 2001  

A refugee child