India at a glance
Government type: Federal republic
Languages: Hindi, English, and 16 other official languages
Ethnic groups: Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, others 3%
Religious beliefs: Hindu 80.5%, Muslim 13.4%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.9%, other groups including Buddhist, Jain, Parsi
Labor Force: Agriculture 60%, Industry and Commerce 18%, Services and Government 22%
Total population: 1.15 billion
Percent of the population under the age of 15: 32%
Urban population: 28%
Life expectancy: 65 years

Focus on reproductive health
Total fertility rate (average number of children born to a woman in her lifetime): 2.8
Contraceptive prevalence rate (among married women ages 15-49): 49% (modern methods), 56% (all methods)
A Woman’s Lifetime Risk of Dying from Maternal Causes: 1 in 70
Percent of births attended by skilled health personnel: 47%*
In India abortion is legal on broad socioeconomic and health grounds, to save a woman’s life, to protect her physical or mental health, and in cases of rape and fetal impairment.

Focus on young people
Percentage of females ages 15-19 who have ever been married: 34%
Percentage of females who have given birth by age 18: 28%
Condom use by young people (15-24) at higher risk sex (2000-2006): Males 59%, Females 51%**

Focus on HIV/AIDS***
Adults 15+ living with HIV (2007): 2,300,000
Women 15+ living with HIV (2007): 880,000
Women 15+ as a percentage of all adults 15+ living with HIV (2007): 38.3%
Adult (15-49) prevalence rate (2007): .3%
Young women (15-24) HIV prevalence rate (2007): .3%
Young men (15-24) HIV prevalence rate (2007): .3%
HIV prevalence rate among female sex workers in capital city (New Delhi): N/A

Focus on gender
Literacy rate for women (ages 15-24): 65%
Literacy rate for men (ages 15-24): 80%
From 1995-2002, 41% of females ages 15+ were economically active compared to 86% of males ages 15+
Expected number of years of formal female schooling: 10*
Ratio of estimated female to male earned income: .31*
Participation of women in national government (% seats held by women): 9%*

Source: Population Reference Bureau, www.prb.org

*Save the Children, State of the World’s Mothers 2008: Closing the Survival Gap for Children Under 5, May 2008.
http://www.savethechildren.org/campaigns/state-of-the-worlds-mothers-report/2008

**World Health Organization, World Health Statistics 2008, May 2008.
http://www.who.int/whosis/whostat/2008/en/index.html

*** UNAIDS, 2008 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic, July 2008.
www.unaids.org