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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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Demographics

How Media Consumption Evolved Throughout COVID-19

This infographic examines trends in each generation’s media consumption to see how Americans adapted during the pandemic.

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How Media Consumption Evolved Throughout COVID-19

View the full size version of this infographic by clicking here

Media consumption spiked in the early days of the COVID-19 outbreak as Americans actively sought information and entertainment while at home. Whether this changed over the course of 2020 remains unclear, however.

To dive deeper into the issue, this infographic explores each generation’s shifts in media consumption habits as the pandemic wore on.

Further below, we’ll also examine which media sources Americans deemed to be the most trustworthy, and why consumption habits may have changed for good.

Changes in American Media Consumption, by Generation

The data in this infographic comes from two surveys conducted by Global Web Index (GWI). The first was completed in April 2020 (N=2,337) and asked participants a series of questions regarding media consumption during COVID-19.

To see how consumption had changed by the end of the year, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation commissioned GWI to complete a follow-up survey in December 2020 (N=2,014). The following tables provide a summary of the results.

Gen Z

Unsurprisingly, a significant percentage of Gen Z reported an increase in digital media consumption in April 2020 in comparison to pre-pandemic habits. This bump was driven by higher use of online videos, video games, and online TV/streaming films.

By December 2020, these media categories became even more popular with this cohort. Most notably, podcasts saw the highest increase, jumping almost 15% by the end of the year.

CategoryApril 2020December 2020Change (percentage points)
Podcasts10.9%25.8%+14.9%
Video Games29.9%42.1%+12.2%
Music Streaming28.0%34.6%+6.6%
Broadcast TV24.1%17.0%-7.1%
Online TV / streaming films36.8%39%+2.2%
Online Videos (Youtube/TikTok/etc.)51.4%59.1%+7.7%
Livestreams17.4%19.5%+2.1%
Books / literature17.1%20.1%+3.0%
Online Press19.9%17.0%-2.9%
Physical Press8.9%6.3%-2.6%
Radio17.8%10.7%-7.1%
None9.0%13.8%+4.8%

The popularity of traditional outlets like broadcast TV and radio declined from their April 2020 highs, though they are still up relative to pre-pandemic levels for Gen Z survey respondents.

Millennials

Results from the December 2020 survey show that Millennials trimmed their media consumption from earlier in the year. This was most apparent in news outlets (online and physical press), which saw double digit declines in popularity relative to April.

CategoryApril 2020December 2020Change (percentage points)
Podcasts20.9%26.3%+5.4%
Video Games32.1%29.6%-2.5%
Music Streaming37.4%30.2%-7.2%
Broadcast TV35.7%24.6%-11.1
Online TV / streaming films42.2%39.2%-3.0
Online Videos (Youtube/TikTok/etc.)44.9%42.5%-2.4%
Livestreams32.9%15.6%-17.3%
Books / literature20.4%24%+3.6%
Online Press37.0%16.5%-20.5%
Physical Press20.3%8.0%-12.3%
Radio27.2%17.9%-9.3%
None9.1%20.3%+11.2%

Books and podcasts were the only two categories to capture more interest from Millennials over the time period. It’s also worth noting that the percentage of respondents who said “none” for media consumption rose to 20.3%, up significantly from 9.1% in April.

Possible factors for the increase in “none” responses include easing government restrictions and a return to more normal work schedules.

Gen X

The media consumption habits of Gen X developed similarly to Millennials over the year.

CategoryApril 2020December 2020Change (percentage points)
Podcasts11.1%13.3%+2.2%
Video Games20.4%16.8%-3.6%
Music Streaming29.6%21.7%-7.9%
Broadcast TV46.4%29.8%-16.6%
Online TV / streaming films40.8%29.9%-10.9%
Online Videos (Youtube/TikTok/etc.)38.5%23.6%-14.9%
Livestreams23.4%8.4%-15.0%
Books / literature22.2%22.6%+0.4%
Online Press32.7%14.3%-18.4%
Physical Press7.6%4.6%-3.0%
Radio23.5%16.6%-6.9%
None16.0%28.9%+12.9%

Broadcast TV and online press saw the largest declines over the time period, while once again, podcasts and books were the only two categories to capture more interest relative to April. The percentage of respondents reporting “none” rose to 28.9%—a slightly higher share than that of Millennials.

Boomers

Media consumption trends among Baby Boomers were mixed, with some categories increasing and others decreasing since April. Broadcast TV saw the biggest decline in usage of all media types, but remained the most popular category for this cohort.

CategoryApril 2020December 2020Change (percentage points)
Podcasts4.4%7.9%+3.5%
Video Games10.5%9.5%-1.0%
Music Streaming13.7%14.4%+0.7%
Broadcast TV42.3%36.7%-5.6%
Online TV / streaming films22.5%22.0%-0.5%
Online videos (Youtube/TikTok/etc.)11.6%18.2%+6.6%
Livestreams8.8%6.5%-2.3%
Books / literature13.7%17.4%+3.7%
Online Press13.8%11.4%-2.4%
Physical Press7.1%4.6%-2.5%
Radio15.3%15.5%+0.2%
None23.0%31.0%+8.0%

Boomers also had the largest share of “none” respondents in both studies (23.0% in April and 31.0% in December).

Where do Americans Go For Trustworthy News?

To learn more about American media consumption—particularly when it came to staying updated on the pandemic—survey respondents were asked to confirm which of the following sources they found trustworthy.

Knight Foundation Trustworthy Sources

The deviations between each generation don’t appear to be too drastic, but there are some key takeaways from this data.

For starters, Gen Z appears to be more skeptical of mainstream news channels like CNN, with only 28.9% believing them to be trustworthy. This contrasts the most with Gen X, which saw 40.1% of its respondents give news channels the thumbs up.

This story is flipped when we turn to the World Health Organization (WHO). Gen Z demonstrated the highest levels of trust in information published by WHO, at 50.3% of respondents. Only 39.0% of Gen X could say the same.

By far the least trustworthy source was foreign governments’ websites. This category had the lowest average approval rating across the four generations, and scored especially poor with Boomers.

The Lasting Effects of the Pandemic

Habits that were picked up during 2020 are likely to linger, even as life finally returns to normal. To find out what’s changed, respondents were asked which categories of media they expected to continue consuming in elevated amounts.

The chart below shows each generation’s top three responses.

media consumption after COVID

Note that the top three for both Gen Z and Millennials are all digital and online categories (video games can be played offline, but the majority of popular titles are online). This contrasts with the preferences of Gen X and Boomers, who appear to be sticking with more traditional outlets in broadcast TV and books.

With consumption habits of younger and older Americans moving in opposite directions, advertisers and media companies will likely need a clear understanding of their target audiences in order to be successful.

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