France

Health systems in transition France 3
On 1 January 2013, the French population totalled 63.7 million inhabitants
in metropolitan France and 2.1 million inhabitants in the five overseas
departments (INSEE, 2013a). It is the second most populous country in the EU
after Germany. Table 1.1 shows the most recent demographic indicators.
Table 1.1
Trends in demographic and socioeconomic indicators for metropolitan France,
1980–2014 (selected years)
1980 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2014
Total population (millions) 53.7 56.5 57.7 58.8 60.9 62.7 66.2
Population, female (% of total) 51.2 51.3 51.4 51.5 51.6 51.6 51.0
Population aged 0–19 years (% of total) 30.6 27.8 26.1 25.6 25.0 24.5 24.4 a
Population aged ≥ 60 years (% of total) 17.0 19.0 20.0 20.6 20.9 22.8 24.0 a
Population aged ≥ 75 years (% of total) 5.7 6.8 6.1 7.2 8.1 8.9 9.2 a
Population growth (average annual growth rate) 0.4 0.5 0.4 0.7 0.8 0.5 0.5 b
Population density (average per km 2 ) 100.83 106.65 108.72 111.22 115.36 118.74 121.00
Fertility rate, total (births per woman) 1.9 1.8 1.7 1.9 1.9 2.0 1.9 a
Birth rate, crude (per 1,000 people) 14.9 13.4 12.6 13.1 12.7 12.8 12.2 a
Death rate, crude (per 1,000 people) 10.2 9.3 9.2 9.0 8.6 8.6 8.8 a
Age dependency ratio (% of working population) 57.0 51.0 54.0 54.0 54.0 54.0 59.0
Percentage population urban 73.3 74.1 74.9 76.9 81.5 85.2 79.0
Proportion of single-person households 24.6 27.1 na 31 32.8 33.6 c na
School enrolment, tertiary
(% gross tertiary enrolment)
25.0 37.0 50.0 54.0 55.0 57.0 60.0
Sources: INSEE, 2013a; World Bank, 2015.
Notes: a 2013 data; b 2012 data; c 2009 data; na: Not available.
Metropolitan France covers an area of about 552 000 km 2 , and with an
average population density of 119/km 2 it ranks 12th in the EU. However, average
density conceals considerable variations; half of the population lives in just over
10% of this territory, while large areas remain sparsely populated. By 2012, 86%
of the population lived in urban areas, with the greatest growth in outer suburbs
and rural areas surrounding towns, rather than in the city centres. Nonetheless,
the population of rural areas has grown 1.5 times faster than urban areas over
the past ten years (Brutel & Levy, 2012).
Historically, French immigration policy has been characterized by a tradition
of welcome, assimilation and integration of foreigners. However, recent laws
have imposed stricter conditions for family reunification and asylum. In
2008, an estimated 5.3 million immigrants (born in a foreign country) resided
in France, representing 8.3% of the population (INSEE, 2012b). Individuals
born in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia accounted for 30% of France’s
immigrant population.