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Visualized: The Head of State of Each Country, by Age and Generation

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This graphic shows the head of state of each nation, their age and generation, and how they relate to their country's population

The Head of State of Each Country By Age and Generation

How many world leaders are in each generation?

This visualization by Edit Gyenge visualizes the ages of every nation’s head of state as of March 22, 2023, comparing them with the median population of the respective country. It uses data from the CIA World Factbook and Wikipedia.

Editor’s note: This visualization looks specifically at heads of state. It should be mentioned that depending on the system of government in a country, heads of state shown here may or may not have actual political power. In some countries, the head of state may be a ceremonial position that does not impact day-to-day governance.

The Oldest and Youngest Heads of State

Here is the full list of heads of state, from oldest to youngest:

CountryHead of StateGenderAgeGeneration
CameroonPaul BiyaMale90Silent Generation
PalestineMahmoud AbbasMale88Silent Generation
Saudi ArabiaSalmanMale88Silent Generation
NorwayHarald VMale86Silent Generation
KuwaitSheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-SabahMale86Silent Generation
IranAli KhameneiMale84Silent Generation
DenmarkMargrethe IIFemale83Silent Generation
IrelandMichael D. HigginsMale82Silent Generation
ItalySergio MattarellaMale82Silent Generation
NamibiaHage GeingobMale82Silent Generation
Cote d'IvoireAlassane OuattaraMale81Silent Generation
MaltaGeorge VellaMale81Silent Generation
Equatorial GuineaTeodoro Obiang Nguema MbasogoMale81Silent Generation
ZimbabweEmmerson MnangagwaMale81Silent Generation
United StatesJoe BidenMale81Silent Generation
NigeriaMuhammadu BuhariMale81Silent Generation
DominicaCharles SavarinMale80Silent Generation
Congo, Republic of theDenis Sassou NguessoMale80Silent Generation
BangladeshAbdul HamidMale79Silent Generation
AustriaAlexander Van der BellenMale79Silent Generation
GhanaNana Akufo-AddoMale79Silent Generation
IraqAbdul Latif RashidMale79Silent Generation
UgandaYoweri MuseveniMale79Silent Generation
NepalRam Chandra PaudelMale79Silent Generation
LiechtensteinHans-Adam IIMale78Silent Generation
BrazilLuiz Inácio Lula da SilvaMale78Silent Generation
LaosThongloun SisoulithMale78Silent Generation
NicaraguaDaniel OrtegaMale78Silent Generation
AlgeriaAbdelmadjid TebbouneMale78Silent Generation
EritreaIsaias AfwerkiMale77Baby Boomers
SwedenCarl XVI GustafMale77Baby Boomers
BruneiHassanal BolkiahMale77Baby Boomers
SamoaAfioga Tuimaleali'ifano Va'aleto'a Sualauvi IIMale76Baby Boomers
DjiboutiIsmaïl Omar GuellehMale76Baby Boomers
FinlandSauli NiinistöMale75Baby Boomers
Antigua and BarbudaCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
AustraliaCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
BahamasCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
BelizeCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
CanadaCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
GrenadaCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
JamaicaCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
New ZealandCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
Papua New GuineaCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
Saint Kitts and NevisCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
Saint LuciaCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
Solomon IslandsCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
TuvaluCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
United KingdomCharles IIIMale75Baby Boomers
PortugalMarcelo Rebelo de SousaMale75Baby Boomers
BarbadosDame Sandra MasonFemale74Baby Boomers
Sri LankaRanil WickremesingheMale74Baby Boomers
PakistanArif AlviMale74Baby Boomers
HaitiAriel HenryMale74Baby Boomers
East TimorJosé Ramos-HortaMale74Baby Boomers
BahrainSheikh Hamad bin Isa Al KhalifaMale73Baby Boomers
EthiopiaSahle-Work ZewdeFemale73Baby Boomers
MyanmarMyint SweMale72Baby Boomers
Marshall IslandsDavid KabuaMale72Baby Boomers
South SudanSalva Kiir MayarditMale72Baby Boomers
GeorgiaSalome ZourabichviliFemale71Baby Boomers
ThailandMaha VajiralongkornMale71Baby Boomers
TajikistanEmomali RahmonMale71Baby Boomers
RussiaVladimir PutinMale71Baby Boomers
South AfricaCyril RamaphhosaMale71Baby Boomers
PanamaLaurentino CortizoMale70Baby Boomers
CambodiaNorodom SihamoniMale70Baby Boomers
KazakhstanKassym-Jomart TokayevMale70Baby Boomers
ChinaXi JinpingMale70Baby Boomers
MexicoAndrés Manuel López ObradorMale70Baby Boomers
YemenRashad al-AlimiMale69Baby Boomers
TurkeyRecep Tayyip ErdoğanMale69Baby Boomers
AngolaJoão LourençoMale69Baby Boomers
SingaporeHalimah YacobFemale69Baby Boomers
BelarusAlexander LukashenkoMale69Baby Boomers
OmanHaitham bin TariqMale69Baby Boomers
EgyptAbdel Fattah el-SisiMale69Baby Boomers
MalawiLazarus ChakweraMale68Baby Boomers
LuxembourgHenriMale68Baby Boomers
LatviaEgils LevitsMale68Baby Boomers
EcuadorGuillermo LassoMale68Baby Boomers
LebanonNajib MikatiMale68Baby Boomers
SomaliaHassan Sheikh MohamudMale68Baby Boomers
GermanyFrank-Walter SteinmeierMale67Baby Boomers
GuatemalaAlejandro GiammatteiMale67Baby Boomers
GreeceKaterina SakellaropoulouFemale67Baby Boomers
MauritaniaMohamed Ould GhazouaniMale67Baby Boomers
Central African RepublicFaustin-Archange TouadéraMale66Baby Boomers
UzbekistanShavkat MirziyoyevMale66Baby Boomers
PhilippinesBongbong MarcosMale66Baby Boomers
RwandaPaul KagameMale66Baby Boomers
TunisiaKaïs SaïedMale65Baby Boomers
MonacoAlbert IIMale65Baby Boomers
EstoniaAlar KarisMale65Baby Boomers
BeninPatrice TalonMale65Baby Boomers
IndiaDroupadi MurmuFemale65Baby Boomers
Trinidad and TobagoPaula-Mae WeekesFemale65Baby Boomers
ComorosAzali AssoumaniMale64Baby Boomers
SurinameChan SantokhiMale64Baby Boomers
GabonAli Bongo OndimbaMale64Baby Boomers
MozambiqueFilipe NyusiMale64Baby Boomers
SeychellesWavel RamkalawanMale64Baby Boomers
ArgentinaAlberto FernándezMale64Baby Boomers
ArmeniaVahagn KhachaturyanMale64Baby Boomers
MauritiusPrithvirajsing RoopunMale64Baby Boomers
RomaniaKlaus IohannisMale64Baby Boomers
TongaTupou VIMale64Baby Boomers
São Tomé and PríncipeCarlos Vila NovaMale64Baby Boomers
MalaysiaAbdullah Sultan Ahmad ShahMale64Baby Boomers
HondurasXiomara CastroFemale64Baby Boomers
NigerMohamed BazoumMale63Baby Boomers
TanzaniaSamia Suluhu HassanFemale63Baby Boomers
JapanNaruhitoMale63Baby Boomers
Cabo VerdeJosé Maria NevesMale63Baby Boomers
BelgiumPhilippeMale63Baby Boomers
ColombiaGustavo PetroMale63Baby Boomers
CubaMiguel Díaz-CanelMale63Baby Boomers
SudanAbdel Fattah al-BurhanMale63Baby Boomers
KiribatiTaneti MaamauMale63Baby Boomers
IsraelIsaac HerzogMale63Baby Boomers
South KoreaYoon Suk-yeolMale63Baby Boomers
United Arab EmiratesSheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al NahyanMale62Baby Boomers
AfghanistanHibatullah AkhundzadaMale62Baby Boomers
Costa RicaRodrigo Chaves RoblesMale62Baby Boomers
IndonesiaJoko WidodoMale62Baby Boomers
BotswanaMokgweetsi MasisiMale62Baby Boomers
CzechiaPetr PavelMale62Baby Boomers
SenegalMacky SallMale62Baby Boomers
AzerbaijanIlham AliyevMale62Baby Boomers
JordanAbdullah IIMale61Baby Boomers
MontenegroMilo ÐukanovicMale61Baby Boomers
MaldivesIbrahim Mohamed SolihMale61Baby Boomers
PeruDina BoluarteFemale61Baby Boomers
ZambiaHakainde HichilemaMale61Baby Boomers
VenezuelaNicolás MaduroMale61Baby Boomers
North MacedoniaStevo PendarovskiMale60Baby Boomers
Congo, Democratic Republic of theFélix TshisekediMale60Baby Boomers
BulgariaRumen RadevMale60Baby Boomers
LesothoLetsie IIIMale60Baby Boomers
MoroccoMohammed VIMale60Baby Boomers
BoliviaLuis ArceMale60Baby Boomers
MicronesiaDavid W. PanueloMale59Baby Boomers
FijiRatu Wiliame KatonivereMale59Baby Boomers
Sierra LeoneJulius Maada BioMale59Baby Boomers
VanuatuNikenike VurobaravuMale59Baby Boomers
LithuaniaGitanas NausedaMale59Baby Boomers
The GambiaAdama BarrowMale58Generation X
SyriaBashar al-AssadMale58Generation X
TogoFaure GnassingbéMale57Generation X
LiberiaGeorge WeahMale57Generation X
CroatiaZoran MilanovicMale57Generation X
KenyaWilliam RutoMale57Generation X
Bosnia and HerzegovinaŽeljka CvijanovicFemale56Generation X
AlbaniaBajram BegajMale56Generation X
NetherlandsWillem-AlexanderMale56Generation X
Dominican RepublicLuis AbinaderMale56Generation X
SpainFelipe VIMale55Generation X
EswatiniMswati IIIMale55Generation X
SloveniaNataša Pirc MusarFemale55Generation X
MongoliaUkhnaagiin KhürelsükhMale55Generation X
BurundiÉvariste NdayishimiyeMale55Generation X
IcelandGuðni Th. JóhannessonMale55Generation X
PalauSurangel Whipps Jr.Male55Generation X
KyrgyzstanSadyr JaparovMale55Generation X
SerbiaAleksandar VucicMale53Generation X
VietnamVõ Văn ThưởngMale53Generation X
ParaguayMario Abdo BenítezMale52Generation X
SwitzerlandAlain BersetMale51Generation X
PolandAndrzej DudaMale51Generation X
MoldovaMaia SanduFemale51Generation X
Guinea-BissauUmaro Sissoco EmbalóMale51Generation X
SlovakiaZuzana CaputováFemale50Generation X
UruguayLuis Lacalle PouMale50Generation X
CyprusNikos ChristodoulidesMale50Generation X
MadagascarAndry RajoelinaMale49Generation X
NauruRuss KunMale48Generation X
LibyaMohamed al-MenfiMale47Generation X
HungaryKatalin NovákFemale46Generation X
FranceEmmanuel MacronMale46Generation X
UkraineVolodymyr ZelenskyyMale45Generation X
BhutanJigme Khesar Namgyel WangchuckMale43Generation X
GuineaMamady DoumbouyaMale43Generation X
GuyanaIrfaan AliMale43Generation X
QatarSheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al ThaniMale43Generation X
El SalvadorNayib BukeleMale42Millennials
TurkmenistanSerdar BerdimuhamedowMale42Millennials
North KoreaKim Jong-unMale41Millennials
MaliAssimi GoïtaMale40Millennials
ChadMahamat DébyMale39Millennials
ChileGabriel BoricMale37Millennials
Burkina FasoIbrahim TraoréMale35Millennials

Though ages vary across countries and regions, Africa has both the oldest and youngest heads of state in the world today.

Last month, Cameroon’s president Paul Biya celebrated his 90th birthday, making him the oldest head of state in the world in a country that has a median population age of just 18.5 years. The African continent is home to about one-third of the world’s silent generation heads of states.

At the other age extreme, 35-year-old Ibrahim Traoré became the youngest head of state in Burkina Faso after a coup d’etat in September 2022.

Traoré is not the only millennial head of state out there. He is joined by others including Chile’s Gabriel Boric, and North Korea’s well-known Kim Jong-un.

Baby Boomers Lead the Way

Born between 1946 and 1964, the baby boomer generation dominates the world’s state leadership roles today.

Over 58% of the world’s heads of state are in this generation, including the UK’s King Charles III who is the head of state of 15 total nations.

Boomers also make up the largest share of women leaders in the top state positions today. While only around 10% of the world’s nations have women head of states, 65% of them are in this generation.

Included in this subset are heads of state such as Peru’s president Dina Boluarte, Honduras’ president Xiomara Castro, and India’s president Droupadi Murmu.

Where Gen X Takes the Lead

According to historical trends, one might expect to see an American president from Generation X in office sometime soon, but that has not yet materialized for various reasons.

However, this generation has made their mark in other parts of the world as heads of state, especially in Europe.

The presidents of Ukraine (Volodymyr Zelenskyy), France (Emmanuel Macron), and Hungary (Katalin Novák) are in Gen X, and are also Europe’s youngest heads of state.

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This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.

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United States

Charting the Rise of America’s Debt Ceiling

By June 1, a debt ceiling agreement must be finalized. The U.S. could default if politicians fail to act—causing many stark consequences.

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Charting the Rise of America’s Debt Ceiling

Every few years the debt ceiling standoff puts the credit of the U.S. at risk.

In January, the $31.4 trillion debt limit—the amount of debt the U.S. government can hold—was reached. That means U.S. cash reserves could be exhausted by June 1 according to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. Should Republicans and Democrats fail to act, the U.S. could default on its debt, causing harmful effects across the financial system.

The above graphic shows the sharp rise in the debt ceiling in recent years, pulling data from various sources including the World Bank, U.S. Department of Treasury, and Congressional Research Service.

Familiar Territory

Raising the debt ceiling is nothing new. Since 1960, it’s been raised 78 times.

In the 2023 version of the debate, Republican House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy is asking for cuts in government spending. However, President Joe Biden argues that the debt ceiling should be increased without any strings attached. Adding to this, the sharp uptick in interest rates have been a clear reminder that rising debt levels can be precarious.

Consider that historically, interest payments on the U.S. debt have been equal to about half the cost of defense. More recently, however, the cost of servicing the debt has risen, and is now almost on par with the defense budget as a whole.

Key Moments In Recent History

Over history, raising the debt ceiling has often been a typical process for Congress.

Unlike today, agreements to raise the debt ceiling were often negotiated faster. Increased political polarization over recent years has contributed to standoffs with damaging consequences.

For instance, in 2011, an agreement was made just days before the deadline. As a result, S&P downgraded the U.S. credit rating from AAA to AA+ for the first time ever. This delay cost an estimated $1.3 billion in extra costs to the government that year.

Before then, the government shut down twice between 1995 and 1996 as President Bill Clinton and Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich went head-to-head. Over a million government workers were furloughed for a week in late November 1995 before the debt limit was raised.

What Happens Now?

Today, Republicans and Democrats have less than two weeks to reach an agreement.

If Congress doesn’t make a deal the result would be that the government can’t pay its bills by taking on new debt. Payment for federal workers would be suspended, certain pension payments would get stalled, and interest payments on Treasuries would be delayed. The U.S. would default under these conditions.

Three Potential Consequences

Here are some of the potential knock-on effects if the debt ceiling isn’t raised by June 1, 2023:

1. Higher Interest Rates

Typically investors require higher interest payments as the risk of their debt holdings increase.

If the U.S. fails to pay interest payments on its debt and gets a credit downgrade, these interest payments would likely rise higher. This would impact the U.S. government’s interest payments and the cost of borrowing for businesses and households.

High interest rates can slow economic growth since it disincentivizes spending and taking on new debt. We can see in the chart below that a gloomier economic picture has already been anticipated, showing its highest probability since 1983.

Probability of a U.S. Recession based on Treasury Spreads

Historically, recessions have increased U.S. deficit spending as tax receipts fall and there is less income to help fund government activities. Additional fiscal stimulus spending can also exacerbate any budget imbalance.

Finally, higher interest rates could spell more trouble for the banking sector, which is already on edge after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.

A rise in interest rates would push down the value of outstanding bonds, which banks hold as capital reserves. This makes it even more challenging to cover deposits, which could further increase uncertainty in the banking industry.

2. Eroding International Credibility

As the world’s reserve currency, any default on U.S. Treasuries would rattle global markets.

If its role as an ultra safe asset is undermined, a chain reaction of negative consequences could spread throughout the global financial system. Often Treasuries are held as collateral. If these debt payments fail to get paid to investors, prices would plummet, demand could crater, and global investors may shift investment elsewhere.

Investors are factoring in the risk of the U.S. not paying its bondholders.

As we can see this in the chart below, U.S. one-year credit default swap (CDS) spreads are much higher than other nations. These CDS instruments, quoted in spreads, offer insurance in the event that the U.S. defaults. The wider the spread, the greater the expected risk that the bondholder won’t be paid.

Additionally, a default could add fuel to the perception of global de-dollarization. Since 2001, the USD has slipped from 73% to 58% of global reserves.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine led to steep financial sanctions, China and India are increasingly using their currencies for trade settlement. President of Russia Vladimir Putin says that two-thirds of trade is settled in yuan or roubles. Recently, China has also entered non-dollar agreements with Brazil and Kazakhstan.

3. Financial Sector Turmoil

Back at home, a debt default would hurt investor confidence in the U.S. economy. Coupled with already higher interest rates impacting costs, financial markets could see added strain. Lower investor demand could depress stock prices.

Is the Debt Ceiling Concept Flawed?

Today, U.S. government debt stands at 129% of GDP.

The annualized cost of servicing this debt has jumped an estimated 90% compared to 2011, driven by increasing debt and higher interest rates.

Some economists argue that the debt ceiling helps keep the government more fiscally responsible. Others suggest that it’s structured poorly, and that if the government approves a level of spending in its budget, that debt ceiling increases should come more automatically.

In fact, it’s worth noting that the U.S. is one of the few countries worldwide with a debt ceiling.

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