Pakistan is the 5th most populous country in the world with a total population of 241.49 million and an annual growth rate of 2.55%, according to a new report.

Pakistan has recently conducted its first-ever digital census, which was facilitated by collaboration between different institutions and the expertise of NADRA in developing the necessary software.

According to the Digital Census Key Findings Report, Pakistan’s total population is 241.49 million, with provincial populations of 127.69 million in Punjab, 55.7 million in Sindh, 40.86 million in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 14.89 million in Balochistan, and 2.36 million in Islamabad.

The most populous city is Karachi with 20.4 million people, followed by Lahore (13 million), Peshawar (4.76 million), and Quetta (2.59 million).

The Minister for Planning and Development, Ahsan Iqbal, stated that transparency was ensured in the digital census through the use of technology, and the collaboration between different institutions facilitated the smooth conduct of the census.

The current population growth rate of Pakistan is 2.55% overall, with variations across the provinces - 2.38% in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 3.2% in Balochistan, 2.53% in Punjab, and 2.57% in Sindh. The gender composition of the population is 51.48% male and 48.51% female.

Pakistan has one of the highest population growth rates in the region and is ranked 191st globally in terms of population growth. If this rate persists, the population is projected to double by 2050. The age distribution shows that Pakistan has a very young population, with 79% below the age of 40 and 40.56% under the age of 15. This large youth population presents both opportunities and challenges for the country’s development.

The rural-urban distribution shows that 61.12% of the population lives in rural areas, while 39% is urban. The urban population is highest in Sindh (54%) and lowest in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (15%).

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Religiously, the population is predominantly Muslim (96.35%), followed by Hindus (1.61%), Christians (1.37%), and scheduled castes (0.56%). The total minority population is 8.7 million, with Hindus (44.09%) and Christians (37.63%) being the largest groups. A significant proportion of the minority population (64.87%) resides in Sindh.

In terms of literacy, 61% of the population aged 10 and above is literate. The highest literacy rate is in Islamabad (84%), followed by Punjab (66%), Sindh (58%), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (51%), and Balochistan (42%). However, 25.37 million children aged 5-16 years are out of school.