20 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
144.4 cu km (2003)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 0.03 cu km/yr (80%/16%/4%)
per capita: 7 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:
hot, dry, dusty harmattan winds affect northern areas; floods are common
Environment - current issues:
tap water is not potable; poaching has diminished the country's reputation as one of the last great wildlife refuges; desertification; deforestation
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Geography - note:
landlocked; almost the precise center of Africa
People ::Central African Republic
Population:
4,844,927 country comparison to the world: 116 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2010 est.)
Age structure:
0–14 years: 40.9% (male 928,277/female 917,739)
15–64 years: 55% (male 1,235,940/female 1,244,958)
65 years and over: 4.1% (male 71,439/female 113,135) (2010 est.)
Median age:
total: 19.1 years
male: 18.7 years
female: 19.5 years (2010 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.149% (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 43
Birth rate:
36.79 births/1,000 population (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 26
Death rate:
15.3 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 11
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population country comparison to the world: 78
Urbanization:
urban population: 39% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 2.3% annual rate of change (2005–10 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15–64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 101.6 deaths/1,000 live births country comparison to the world: 7 male: 109.65 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 93.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 49.68 years country comparison to the world: 214 male: 48.45 years
female: 50.95 years (2010 est.)
Total fertility rate:
4.68 children born/woman (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 33
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
6.3% (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 11
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
160,000 (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 35
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
11,000 (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 30
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne disease: malaria
respiratory disease: meningococcal meningitis
water contact disease: schistosomiasis
animal contact disease: rabies (2009)
Nationality:
noun: Central African(s)
adjective: Central African
Ethnic groups:
Baya 33%, Banda 27%, Mandjia 13%, Sara 10%, Mboum 7%, M'Baka 4%,
Yakoma 4%, other 2%
Religions:
indigenous beliefs 35%, Protestant 25%, Roman Catholic 25%, Muslim 15%
note: animistic beliefs and practices strongly influence the Christian majority
Languages:
French (official), Sangho (lingua franca and national language), tribal languages
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 48.6%
male: 64.8%
female: 33.5% (2000 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 7 years
male: 8 years
female: 5 years (2009)
Education expenditures:
