Lao population growth slower in past ten years: census

Laos' population growth reached 1.45 percent in the past 10 years, lower compared to the previous 10-year period, according to the final report on the fourth Population and Housing Census released on Sunday.

During 1995-2005 period, the country's population growth stayed at 2.08 percent, local Vientiane Times cited the result of the census which was conducted in March 2015.

At the time of the 2015 census, Lao population stood at nearly 6.5 million with 3,254,770 male and 3,237,227 female.

Fifty percent of the population is under 25, and the average number of children born per woman has dropped to 3.2, down from 4.5 in 2005, according to the census.

Rural inhabitants account for the large majority of the population with only one in three people living in urban areas. Capital Vientiane has the highest population density, with 209 people on average for every square kilometer. The density is nearly eight times higher than the national average figure of 27 people per square kilometer.

Around one in three Lao people are between 10 and 24 years old and 64 percent of the total population is in the working age group. This continues to provide Laos with a unique demographic window of opportunity to accelerate economic development, said United Nations Population Fund Representative Frederika Meijer. Endit