A third of the population is forecast to be ultra-Orthodox.
By LIDAR GRAVÉ-LAZIUpdated: MAY 22, 2017 04:44Haredim(photo credit: REUTERS/BAZ RATNER)
The nation’s population is expected to reach some 20 million by the end of 2065, with haredim comprising nearly a third of the population, according to a report the Central Bureau of Statistics released on Sunday.At the end of 2015, 8.5 million people lived in Israel. The population is projected to grow to 10 million by the end of 2024, to 15 million by the end of 2048, and to 20 million by the end of 2065.The researchers expect no significant changes in the proportion of the population made up by Jews, Arabs and others.The population makeup in 2040 is forecast to be similar to that of 2015 – 79% Jews (and others) and 21% Arab.In 2065, the Jewish (and other) population is expected to rise to some 81% of the population while the Arab proportion of the citizenry is projected to decrease to 19%.The proportion of ultra-Orthodox in the population is expected to increase from 11% in 2015 to 20% by 2040 and 32% by 2065.The ultra-Orthodox are forecast to comprise 40% of the Jewish (and other) population in 2065 – up from 14% in 2015 and 24% in 2040.In 2015, 75% of Israeli children aged 0-14 were Jews or others, including 19% of all children who were ultra-Orthodox.This share is expected to rise to 84% of the child population in 2065, of them 49% ultra-Orthodox.In contrast, 25% of Israeli children aged 0-14 in 2015 were Arab; this proportion is expected to decrease to 15% by 2065.
The ultra-Orthodox and Arabs – two groups with low labor force participation rates – are expected to comprise an increasing share of the working age (25- 65) population.In 2015, 81.2% of the working age population were Jews or others, including 7.5% of the total working age population who were ultra-Orthodox. By 2065, the ultra-Orthodox are expected to make up 26% of working age Israelis.Similarly, in 2015 Arabs made up 18.8% of the working age population, and this figure is expected to rise to 21.8% in 2065.Israel’s population – like the rest of the world – is an aging one, the report found.In 2015, 11.1% of Israelis were aged 65 or older; this is forecast to rise to 14.3% in 2040, and to 15.3% in 2065.
