4.8 - Population Characteristics of Latin America

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Population Facts

• Latin American contains about 8.5% of the global population
• Its total population is over 600 million (which is less than Europe)
• Largest countries by population are: Brazil (204 million), Mexico (122 million), Colombia (47 million), Argentina (43 million), Peru (30 million) 

• Largest cities in Latin America by population: Sao Paolo, Brazil (11.9 million) ; Mexico City, Mexico (9 million);  Lima, Peru (8.9 million); Bogata, Colombia (7.9 million); Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (6.5 million) ; Santiago, Chile (5.5 million) ; Caracas, Venezuela (3.3 million) ;  Buenos Aires, Argentina (3 million);  Salvador, Brazil (2.9 million)

• Population growth is declining steadily
• In 2018 the fertility rate was about 2 children per woman (US is 1.78)
• The infant mortality rate is 13.7 infant deaths per 1,000 live births (US is 5.68)
• Death rates under 5, 16.9 per 1000 live births (US is 6.89)
• Average life expectancy for men is 73 years and for women, 78 years (77 and 81 in the US)
• Almost 81% of the population lives in cities (82% in US)
• Adult literacy 94%
• 14 million children and adolescents ranging between ages 7 to 18 are out of the educational system
• Indigenous population varies by country: The highest percentages -  Bolivia (66% of total population); Guatemala (40%); Belize (16%);  Peru (14%) ; Panama (10%); Guyana and Mexico (9%). The lowest percentages - El Salvador (0.2%); Brazil (0.4%);  Suriname (1.5%);  Argentina (1.6%);  Costa Rica (1.7%)
• The Latin American Countries with the highest black populations: Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador.
• 1% of Latin America's population is Asian. The countries with the highest percentage: Brazil, Peru, Venezuela, Mexico,  and Argentina,

Population Trends

By 2018, about 650 million people were living in Latin America, close to 10 times the population in 1492. This reflects high birth rates that persisted through most of the 20th century.  In poor rural areas, children were seen as a source of wealth because they could do farm work and other labor at a young age and eventually care for aging relatives. Infant death rates were also high. Women had less access to education and birth control. And the Roman Catholic Church opposition to family planning reinforced this high birthrate. 

Between 1975 and 2018, the annual rate of natural increase (the birth rate minus the death rate) for the entire region fell from about 1.9% to 1.1%, a rate of growth lower than the world average.  Some countries are farther along in this demographic transition than others. Looking at the population pyramids below, you can see that Brazil's pyramid (on the left) is narrower at the bottom than in the middle, indicating an aging population and a declining birthrate. Guatemala's pyramid is widest at the bottom, indicating a younger population with birth rates that are declining more gradually.

This demographic transition is the result of better access to food, shelter, sanitation, and medical care that has reduced infant mortality.  As populations have urbanized and economies have grown, women have gained better access to education and employment, delaying child bearing and having smaller families.  Women continue to move in to high-level jobs, including management positions in corporations and government. Women have become presidents in Chile, Argentina, and Brazil in the last decade.

Because 25% of the region's population is under the age of 15, even if couples have only one or two children, the population will continue to grow. Population projections for the year 2050 are for 783 million people in the region. Supplying this extra 133 million with food, water, homes, jobs, schools and hospitals will be challenging.

Population Distribution

The population density of Latin America is very unequal.  Areas of high population density occur in highland environments (tierra templada), which have remained densely populated since before Europeans arrived.  Mexico City, the highlands of Guatemala and the Andean zones of Colombia and Ecuador have high densities.  But high concentrations are also found in the lowlands along the Pacific coast of Central America, and especially along the Atlantic coast of South America.

Family and Gender

The basic social institution in Latin America has been the extended family, which includes cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and more distant relatives. It has been the cultural norm, that you should sacrifice you personal interests for the greater good of your extended family and that you will be happiest doing so. For women this has often meant pursuing less career oriented work. Women have often worked part-time or in the informal economy. For men this has meant that they need to provide for their families even if it means being away from home for extended periods of time.

Extended families frequently live together in "domestic compounds" with several houses sharing a piece of property. Social groups are likely to be family members of several generations rather than unrelated groups of single young adults or married couples, as is often the case in the U.S. 

Gender roles in the region are strongly influenced by the Church. The patron saint of almost every country in the region is a form of the Virgin Mary, who is held up as a model for women. "Marianismo" emphasizes virginity, motherhood, chastity and service to family.  

Despite this ongoing social tradition, the disparity is closing between the number of working men versus women. There remains a  gap between women's labor participation and  that of men amounting to more than 25 percent on average. Further,  for each hour worked, women's earnings are on average 17 percent below those of men of the same age and education and economic status. But this a significant improvement over the past 30 years.

Large differences also exist among countries in the region when it comes to the  pace of growth, and the levels of female participation achieved, with figures lagging significantly in the poorest countries. In 2018 overall, over half of women (aged 15 or over) in 18 countries in the region were working, with Peru taking the lead at 68.7 percent, followed by Bolivia with 63 percent, and among the lowest, Costa Rica at 45.1 percent, and 43.5 percent in Mexico. One of the main factors underpinning a growing population of  working women  is access to higher education. In Peru, 90 percent of women with advanced education (which in this case refers to schooling beyond high-school level), were working; 80 percent in Venezuela, with similar correlations in neighboring countries.

LGBTQ Rights

Respect for rights of gays and lesbians has grown significantly in recent years: Argentina legalized same-sex marriage in 2010, Brazil and Uruguay in 2013, Mexico in 2015, Colombia 2016, Ecuador 2019, Costa Rica 2020. Homosexuality is still illegal in Guyana. Despite this apparent acceptance in many Latin American countries, social attitudes are complex and often contradictory. Sao Paolo has the largest "Pride Parade" in the world yet violence against LGBTQ people is common and rarely addressed by law enforcement. Brazil's president, Jair Bolsonaro, has proclaimed that he is a proud "homophobe".