Total dependency ratio in Cameroon
Cameroon: Total dependency ratio was 80.3% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
80.3%
Change on year
down 1.2%
World rank
22nd
of 236 countries
All-time high
99.2%
in 1989
All-time low
74.4%
in 1954
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Total dependency ratio in Cameroon, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, total dependency ratio in Cameroon stood at 80.3%.
That represents a change of down 1.2% on the previous year and down 7.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, total dependency ratio in Cameroon peaked at 99.2% in 1989 and was at its lowest, 74.4%, in 1954.
That places Cameroon 22nd out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Total dependency ratio in Cameroon, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 75.0% | — |
| 1951 | 74.8% | -0.3% |
| 1952 | 74.6% | -0.3% |
| 1953 | 74.4% | -0.2% |
| 1954 | 74.4% | -0.0% |
| 1955 | 74.5% | +0.1% |
| 1956 | 74.7% | +0.3% |
| 1957 | 75.0% | +0.4% |
| 1958 | 75.5% | +0.6% |
| 1959 | 76.0% | +0.7% |
| 1960 | 76.9% | +1.1% |
| 1961 | 78.1% | +1.6% |
| 1962 | 79.0% | +1.2% |
| 1963 | 79.8% | +1.0% |
| 1964 | 80.7% | +1.1% |
| 1965 | 81.6% | +1.0% |
| 1966 | 82.3% | +0.9% |
| 1967 | 83.1% | +0.9% |
| 1968 | 83.8% | +0.9% |
| 1969 | 84.7% | +1.0% |
| 1970 | 85.5% | +1.0% |
| 1971 | 86.3% | +1.0% |
| 1972 | 87.2% | +1.0% |
| 1973 | 88.0% | +0.9% |
| 1974 | 88.8% | +0.9% |
| 1975 | 89.6% | +0.9% |
| 1976 | 90.6% | +1.1% |
| 1977 | 91.7% | +1.3% |
| 1978 | 92.7% | +1.1% |
| 1979 | 93.6% | +1.0% |
| 1980 | 94.0% | +0.4% |
| 1981 | 94.0% | +0.1% |
| 1982 | 95.7% | +1.7% |
| 1983 | 97.6% | +2.0% |
| 1984 | 98.2% | +0.7% |
| 1985 | 98.5% | +0.3% |
| 1986 | 98.7% | +0.2% |
| 1987 | 98.9% | +0.2% |
| 1988 | 99.1% | +0.2% |
| 1989 | 99.2% | +0.1% |
| 1990 | 99.2% | -0.0% |
| 1991 | 99.2% | -0.1% |
| 1992 | 99.0% | -0.2% |
| 1993 | 98.6% | -0.3% |
| 1994 | 98.1% | -0.5% |
| 1995 | 97.5% | -0.6% |
| 1996 | 96.7% | -0.8% |
| 1997 | 95.7% | -1.0% |
| 1998 | 94.7% | -1.0% |
| 1999 | 93.9% | -0.8% |
| 2000 | 93.2% | -0.8% |
| 2001 | 92.3% | -0.9% |
| 2002 | 91.5% | -0.9% |
| 2003 | 90.7% | -0.9% |
| 2004 | 90.1% | -0.7% |
| 2005 | 89.6% | -0.6% |
| 2006 | 89.1% | -0.5% |
| 2007 | 88.7% | -0.5% |
| 2008 | 88.3% | -0.5% |
| 2009 | 87.9% | -0.4% |
| 2010 | 87.6% | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 87.4% | -0.3% |
| 2012 | 87.1% | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 86.7% | -0.4% |
| 2014 | 86.0% | -0.8% |
| 2015 | 85.2% | -0.9% |
| 2016 | 84.7% | -0.6% |
| 2017 | 84.5% | -0.3% |
| 2018 | 84.1% | -0.4% |
| 2019 | 83.6% | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 82.9% | -0.8% |
| 2021 | 82.1% | -1.0% |
| 2022 | 81.2% | -1.0% |
| 2023 | 80.3% | -1.2% |
Cameroon compared with similar countries
- Cameroon's 80.3% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 65.5%, 1.2× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Cameroon's 80.3% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 77.8%, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 74.9% | 74.4% | 76.0% | 10 |
| 1960s | 81.0% | 76.9% | 84.7% | 10 |
| 1970s | 89.4% | 85.5% | 93.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 97.4% | 94.0% | 99.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 97.3% | 93.9% | 99.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 90.1% | 87.9% | 93.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 85.7% | 83.6% | 87.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 81.6% | 80.3% | 82.9% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Cameroon
More reference data data for Cameroon
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.4076 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.49 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 4.56 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.199 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 4.56 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.54 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 17.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 23.23 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.08 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is total dependency ratio in Cameroon?
- Total dependency ratio in Cameroon was 80.3% in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest total dependency ratio recorded in Cameroon?
- The highest recorded value was 99.2% in 1989.
- What is the lowest total dependency ratio recorded in Cameroon?
- The lowest recorded value was 74.4% in 1954.
- How does Cameroon rank for total dependency ratio?
- Cameroon ranks 22nd out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is total dependency ratio rising or falling in Cameroon?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Cameroon data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Total dependency ratio. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of children (under 15) and people aged 65 and over per 100 working-age people (aged 15 to 64).