Mashonaland West: population, jobs, cost of living, poverty, health, schooling, water and housing
Mashonaland West is a province of Zimbabwe, number 3 of 10 by population. The 2022 Population and Housing Census counted 1,893,584 people in Mashonaland West province (934,640 men and boys, 958,944 women and girls), 12.5% of Zimbabwe's 15,178,957; 3rd largest of the 10 provinces.
In depth
- Economy, jobs and prices in Mashonaland West: 14.2% of the labour force aged 15 and over in Mashonaland West was unemployed at the 2022 census (strict definition: without work and looking for it), 3rd lowest of the 10 provinces (Zimbabwe: 14.8%); the rate was 19.6% for women and 11.0% for men.
- Health in Mashonaland West: The 2022 census recorded an under-five mortality rate of 36.3 deaths per 1,000 live births in Mashonaland West and an infant mortality rate of 22.8; the under-five rate is 5th lowest of the 10 provinces (Zimbabwe: 39.7 and 24.2).
- Education in Mashonaland West: 52.1% of secondary-school-age children in Mashonaland West were attending secondary school in 2023-24 (net attendance ratio), 5th lowest of the 10 provinces (Zimbabwe: 53.5%).
- Poverty and living standards in Mashonaland West: 78.7% of people in Mashonaland West lived below the total consumption poverty line in 2017, ZIMSTAT's latest provincial poverty measurement (PICES 2017), 4th highest of the 10 provinces (Zimbabwe: 70.5%).
Is the population of Mashonaland West growing?
Mashonaland West's population grew from 1,501,656 in the 2012 census to 1,893,584 in 2022, an average of 2.3% a year, 2nd fastest of the 10 provinces (Zimbabwe: 1.5% a year).
Source: Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) · saved copyHow many people in Mashonaland West live in towns?
33.1% of Mashonaland West's people lived in urban areas at the 2022 census (627,348 urban, 1,266,236 rural), 3rd most urban of the 10 provinces (Zimbabwe: 38.6%). The province had 33 people per square kilometre (Zimbabwe: 39).
Source: Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) · saved copyHow many children do women in Mashonaland West have?
Women in Mashonaland West had 4.1 children each on average according to the 2022 census, 3rd highest of the 10 provinces (Zimbabwe: 3.7).
Source: Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) · saved copyAre births registered in Mashonaland West?
58.2% of children under five in Mashonaland West had their birth registered with the civil authorities in 2023-24, 5th highest of the 10 provinces (Zimbabwe: 56.6%); 38.5% had a birth certificate.
Source: Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) and Ministry of Health and Child Care, with ICF (The DHS Program) · saved copyHow provinces are governed in Zimbabwe
Provinces (8) and metropolitan provinces (2: Harare, Bulawayo). In practice a Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution appointed by the President; constitutional provincial/metropolitan councils not yet in operation. Coordinates government programmes in the province.
Every tier of government in Zimbabwe
Other provinces of Zimbabwe
- Harare 2,427,231
- Manicaland 2,037,703
- Midlands 1,811,905
- Mashonaland East 1,731,173
- Masvingo 1,638,528
- Mashonaland Central 1,384,891
- Matabeleland North 827,645
- Matabeleland South 760,345
- Bulawayo 665,952
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Sources
- Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT): 2022 Population and Housing Census Report (Volume 1): appendix tables by province, read 27 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 bdebd23be87e…)
- Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) and Ministry of Health and Child Care, with ICF (The DHS Program): Zimbabwe Demographic and Health Survey 2023-24: Final Report (province rows of the tables), read 27 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0a74a171032f…)
- Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT): Poverty Datum Lines: Food and Total Consumption Poverty Lines per person per month by province, April 2024 to October 2026, read 27 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 49b9d5ceb7eb…)
- Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT): Zimbabwe Poverty Report 2017 (PICES 2017), Tables 2.7 and 2.8: poverty by province, read 27 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 2aeb02bbf4c7…)
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