Population and Demographics

The population density (341 per sq km) of Belgium is one of the highest in Europe, after that of the Netherlands and some microstates such as Monaco. The areas with the highest population density are around the Brussels-Antwerp-Ghent-Leuven agglomerations, also known as the Flemish Diamond, as well as other important urban centres as Liège, Charleroi, Mons, Kortrijk, Bruges, Hasselt and Namur. The Ardennes have the lowest density.

As of 2005, the Flemish Region has a population of about 6,043,161, Wallonia 3,395,942 and Brussels 1,006,749. Almost all of the population is urban (97.3% in 1999). The main cities and their populations are Brussels (1,006,749), Antwerp (457,749), Ghent (230,951), Charleroi (201,373), and Liège (185,574).

Both the Dutch spoken in Belgium and the Belgian French have minor differences in vocabulary and semantic nuances from the varieties spoken in the Netherlands and France. Many people can still speak dialects of Dutch, but the Walloon language that was once the main dialect of Wallonia is now only understood and spoken occasionally, mostly by elderly people. These dialects, along with some other ones like Picard or Limburgish, are not used in public life.

About 86 percent of the Belgian population has the Belgian nationality; 9 percent are either (in order of their numbers) Italian, Moroccan, French, Turkish or Dutch and 5% has one of various other nationalities.

Since independence, Catholicism, counterbalanced by strong freethought movements, has had an important role in Belgium's politics. The laicist constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the government generally respects this right in practice. About 75% of the population are Roman Catholic, with the remaining 25% Protestant or adhering to other faiths.

An estimated 99% of the adult population is literate. Education is compulsory from the ages of six to 18, but many Belgians continue to study until the age of about 23. Among the OECD countries in 1999, Belgium had the third-highest proportion of 18-21-year-olds enrolled in postsecondary education, at 42%.

Facts and Figures

• Population: 10,419,000
• Age Structure:
  • 0-14 years: 16.5% (male 873,130/female 836,785)
  • 15-64 years: 66.1% (male 3,467,044/female 3,406,030)
  • 65 years and over: 17.4% (male 746,969/female 1,062,268)
• Median Age:
  • Total: 41.1 years
  • Male: 39.9 years
  • Female: 42.4 years
• Population Growth Rate: 0.12%
• Birth Rate: 10.29 births/1,000 population
• Death Rate: 10.32 deaths/1,000 population
• Net Migration Rate: 1.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population
• Sex Ratio:
  • At birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
  • Under 15 years: 1.043 male(s)/female
  • 15-64 years: 1.018 male(s)/female
  • 65 years and over: 0.703 male(s)/female
  • Total population: 0.959 male(s)/female
• Infant Mortality Rate:
  • Total: 4.56 deaths/1,000 live births
  • Male: 5.13 deaths/1,000 live births
  • Female: 3.96 deaths/1,000 live births
• Life Expectancy at Birth:
  • Total population: 78.92 years
  • Male: 75.75 years
  • Female: 82.24 years
• Total Fertility Rate: 1.64 children born/woman
• HIV/AIDS:
  • Adult prevalence rate: 0.2%
  • People living with HIV/AIDS: 10,000
• Ethnic Groups:
  • Fleming 58%
  • Walloon 31%
  • Mixed or other 11%
• Religions:
  • Roman Catholic 75%
  • Other (includes Protestant) 25%
• Languages:
  • Dutch (official) 60%
  • French (official) 40%
  • German (official) less than 1%
• Literacy:
  • Total population: 99%
  • Male: 99%
  • Female: 99%