World Energy Outlook 2007

ecently extended into petrochemicals, metals, industrial goods, renewable energy,
automotive components, health services and other industries.
Demographic Trends
India is home to around 1.1 billion people, about 17% of the world’s population.
It is the world’s second most populous country after China. Uttar Pradesh is the
most heavily-populated state, with some 166 million inhabitants, while Sikkim is
the least populated, with about 540 thousand. India’s population grew by 1.8%
per year from 1990 to 2000 and then decelerated to 1.5% per year from 2000 to
2005. The annual increase in population in India is about equivalent to the
population of Australia. Some 80% of Indians are Hindu.
Table 14.1: Demographic Indicators
1980 1990 2000 2005
Population (million) 687 850 1 016 1 095
Rural share (%) 77 74 72 71
Economically active population (%) 38 39 39 40
Sex ratio (females per 1 000 males,
ages 0-6) 978 995 927 n.a.
Life expectancy at birth (years) 54 59 63 64
Under-5 mortality rate
(per 100 000 live births) 173 123 94 74
Sources: Population statistics from UNPD (2007). Other statistics are from http://unstats.un.org/.
Although the fertility rate has fallen sharply in recent decades, mortality
rates have fallen even faster. In particular, the under-five mortality rate
has more than halved since the 1980s, to 74 per 100 000 live births in 2005
(Table 14.1). While this is lower than the regional average, it is still far above
the figure for Latin America (31) and East Asia (33). About 35% of the Indian
population is below age 15. The share is 38% in rural areas, reflecting higher
fertility rates. As a result of the large proportion of children in the population,
India’s economically active population was 40% of the total in 2005, compared
with 60% for China. Only the Middle East and North Africa have lower rates
of economically active population than India.
India’s demographic profile is expected to add some 270 million people to the
workforce in the period to 2025 (McKinsey Global Institute, 2007). There will be
no shortage of future workers, particularly for low to medium-skilled jobs. India is
well positioned to reap the benefits of favourable demographics over the long term
due to the continued movement of labour from agriculture to industry and services.
440 World Energy Outlook 2007 - INDIA’S ENERGY PROSPECTS