People

Population: 4 599 785 (July 1998 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 40% (male 936 206; female 888 427)

15-64 years: 57% (male 1 374 471; female 1 263 750)

65 years and over: 3% (male 62 593; female 74 338) (July 1998 est.)

Population growth rate: 2.27% (1998 est.)

Birth rate: 32.37 births/1 000 population (1998 est.)

Death rate: 9.65 deaths/1 000 population (1998 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1 000 population (1998 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years: 1.09 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.84 male(s)/female (1998 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 57.09 deaths/1 000 live births (1998 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 58.06 years

male: 57.18 years

female: 58.98 years (1998 est.)

Total fertility rate: 4.26 children born/woman (1998 est.)

Nationality:

noun: Papua New Guinean(s)

adjective: Papua New Guinean

Ethnic groups: Melanesian Papuan Negrito Micronesian Polynesian

Religions: Roman Catholic 22% Lutheran 16% Presbyterian/Methodist/London Missionary Society 8% Anglican 5% Evangelical Alliance 4% Seventh-Day Adventist 1% other Protestant sects 10% indigenous beliefs 34%

Languages: English spoken by 1%-2% pidgin English widespread Motu spoken in Papua region

note: 715 indigenous languages

Literacy:

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 72.2%

male: 81%

female: 62.7% (1995 est.)