Indonesia Population

The country of Indonesia is the fourth-largest country in the world by population. It has a population of 273.8 million people spread out over 17,000 islands and over 1.9 million square miles of land. The Java Island has about 56.7% of Indonesia’s population, which makes it the world’s most populous island. The country’s current population density is at 140 individuals per square kilometer.

The country has had an effective family planning program in place since 1967. However, Indonesia’s population growth is still high at 1.66%. At that rate, Indonesia is predicted to surpass the United States’ population by 2050.

A relatively young population

Compared to Western nations, Indonesia’s population is quite young. The country’s current median age is 28.7 and though it is slowly rising, it is only predicted to hit 36 years of age by 2050. People aged 20 to 54 account for over 50% of the country’s total population, and this age group is of significant importance for their high earning and purchasing power. This age group accounts for almost 78% of the country’s employed population and their gross income is 75% of the gross national income—making this youthful population the single biggest driver of the country’s economy and consumerism.

A tremendous increase in urbanization

The country’s rapid development in the 1970s drove a high urbanization rate that started to skyrocket in the late 1980s and eventually surpassed the rural population in 2010. By then, 40% of the country’s population had moved to an urban area and Jakarta—Indonesia’s largest city—has reached a population density of 14,400 people per square kilometer. In contrast, the country’s allover population density was around 151 people per square kilometer. The country currently has 15,785 urban subdivisions.

An ethnic meeting point

Indonesia is situated at the border of two of the world’s largest population groups: Asians and Melanesians. This has resulted in a country of extraordinary diversity that is reflected in the people, language, and culture. There are over 300 ethnic groups that call Indonesia home and more than 600 distinct languages. Almost all the major world religions and many indigenous ones are practiced freely in Indonesia, though a large majority of people identify as being from Malay heritage and speak Malayo-Polynesian languages and follow Islam.

An expanding literacy rate

When Indonesia was a colony of the Dutch, the Dutch government did not provide university-level education to Indonesians and opportunities for even primary and secondary levels of schooling were limited. Since independence, the government has placed increasing importance on the education of the people and the country’s literacy rate has risen to 95% for adults over 15 years of age. This is in contrast to a literacy rate of only 67% in 1980.

Tourism and the economy

Tourism is a large component of Indonesia’s economy and the country was ranked 20th in the world tourist industry in 2017. It is the ninth-fastest growing tourist sector in the world and the third-fastest growing in Asia. Tourism provides eight percent of the country’s GDP and attracted some 20 million tourists in 2019. Much of Indonesia’s tourism is international, with 16 million foreign tourists in 2019. Singapore, Malaysia, China, Australia and Japan are the top sources of tourists for Indonesia. The country is ranked as one of Lonely Planet’s top 10 countries to visit in the world.

A dropping poverty rate

As an emerging middle-income country, Indonesia has made incredible gains in reducing poverty and has cut the country’s poverty rate in half in twenty years, dropping it to 9.4% in 2019. Out of 273.8 million people, around 25 million still live below the international poverty line and 20% of the entire population remains vulnerable of falling into poverty.