Population - 6,867,995 (est. July 2000)

Age Structure – Age 0-14 - 41% of population
Age 15-61 - 55 % of population
65 and over - 4% of population

Illiteracy – Nearly half the population – 47%

Infant Mortality Rate – 76 deaths/1,000

Life expectancy – 52 years

Land use – Arable (suitable for planting) – 20%
(Crops – 13%; Pastures – 18%; Forest and Woodland – 5%

Population Below Poverty Line – 80%
$2.00 (US) per day; and 54% in extreme poverty, less than $1.00 (US) per day. 

Deforestation – 97%

High Incidence of HIV/AIDS – 5.6%

(World Bank Report)