Share of Population Under 15 by Country (2026)

The three youngest countries are Central African Republic (48.7), Somalia (46.6), Niger (46.2); the three oldest are South Korea (10.2), Hong Kong (10.3), Japan (11.2).

Across all 216 countries the median is 22.4 % of population and the simple (unweighted) average is 25.1; the spread from 10.2 to 48.7 shows how differently countries fare on this measure.

Over roughly the last decade the biggest increases were in Uzbekistan (+3 pts), Oman (+2.1 pts), Mongolia (+2 pts), while the largest decreases were in Syria (-12.1 pts), Bhutan (-6.6 pts), Philippines (-6.4 pts).

By continent, the leaders are Afghanistan in Asia (42.6), Kosovo in Europe (20), Central African Republic in Africa (48.7), Guatemala in North America (31), Bolivia in South America (29.4), Samoa in Oceania (38.1).

The share of children in the population reflects recent fertility. A high share means a large future workforce but also heavy demand for schools and child health; a low share signals an ageing society.

Source: World Bank Open Data (indicator SP.POP.0014.TO.ZS). Countries without a published value are not ranked. Each country's own page shows the full historical series and its rank on this and every other indicator.