Data was sourced from the UN’s World Population Prospects 2024, and all figures are rounded.

Ranked: Asian Countries by Population Change (1990–2023)

The Middle East has seen the largest relative population growth in Asia, in some cases up 3-6x as seen in Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia.

RankCountry% Change(1990–2023)2023 Population(Thousands)
1🇶🇦 Qatar5372,979
2🇦🇪 UAE39810,642
3🇦🇫 Afghanistan22441,455
4🇯🇴 Jordan20011,439
5🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia19133,264
6🇧🇭 Bahrain1881,570
7🇾🇪 Yemen18439,391
8🇰🇼 Kuwait1614,839
9🇴🇲 Oman1565,049
10🇮🇶 Iraq14045,074
11🇵🇸 Palestine1375,409
12🇰🇭 Cambodia12717,424
13🇲🇻 Maldives123526
14🇵🇰 Pakistan102247,504
15🇮🇱 Israel949,256
16🇲🇾 Malaysia9035,126
17🇲🇴 Macao89714
18🇸🇬 Singapore855,789
19🇹🇲 Turkmenistan857,364
20🇹🇯 Tajikistan8110,390
21🇵🇭 Philippines78114,891
22🇧🇳 Brunei75459
23🇹🇱 Timor-Leste741,384
24🇱🇦 Laos707,665
25🇸🇾 Syria6723,595
26🇨🇾 Cyprus651,345
27🇺🇿 Uzbekistan6435,652
28🇮🇳 India621,438,070
29🇱🇧 Lebanon595,773
30🇹🇷 Türkiye5487,271
31🇲🇳 Mongolia523,432
32🇮🇷 Iran5090,609
33🇮🇩 Indonesia50281,190
34🇻🇳 Vietnam50100,352
35🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan497,074
36🇧🇩 Bangladesh49171,467
37🇳🇵 Nepal4829,695
38🇦🇿 Azerbaijan4110,318
39🇱🇰 Sri Lanka3822,972
40🇭🇰 Hong Kong357,443
41🇲🇲 Myanmar3354,134
42🇹🇭 Thailand3171,702
43🇧🇹 Bhutan31786
44🇰🇵 North Korea2426,418
45🇨🇳 China241,422,585
46🇰🇷 South Korea1851,749
47🇹🇼 Taiwan1523,317
48🇰🇿 Kazakhstan1420,330
49🇯🇵 Japan2124,371
50🇦🇲 Armenia-192,943
51🇬🇪 Georgia-303,807

On the whole, nearly all Asian countries have added significantly to their people in the last three decades, including some of the world’s most populous countries: India (+62%), China (+24%), Indonesia (+50%), and Pakistan (+102%).

Only two transcontinental countries—Armenia and Georgia—have seen population declines. War is a primary reason for both, leading to economic repercussions, in turn fuelling an exodus of people.

Chasing Demographic Dividends

This explosion in people has also fueled Asia’s economic growth, particularly in China and India, from surging demand for goods and services.

In fact, Asia now has the highest share of world GDP (36%), eclipsing North America (31%) by five percentage points.

At the same time, many parts of the continent are still struggling with food insecurity, poverty, and civil strife. And for many of its advanced economies, the demographic dividend is ending. As birth rates fall, and the population ages, social security nets may not be able to keep up with increasing demands.

Source Zero Hedge