25 Countries where Muslim Population will Increase the Most by 2030

Ashar Jawad
8 min read

In This Article:

In this article, we look at 25 countries where Muslim population will increase the most by 2030. You can skip our detailed analysis on the economic potential of the Islamic world and head over directly to the 10 Countries where Muslim Population will Increase the Most by 2030.

Islam is the second largest and the fastest growing religion in the world, with 1.8 billion Muslims, who account for 24% of the global population. Driven by fertility rates and the proportion of youth among the major religions, the world’s religious profile is rapidly evolving. According to the PEW Research Center, by 2030, the world’s Muslim population is likely to be proportionate to 26.5% of the world’s population, while by 2050, it will account for nearly 30% of the share and come close to equaling the total number of Christians in the world – which is currently an estimated 2.4 billion people.

The population of Muslims in 2030 will be 38% higher than in 2010, while the Christian population is projected to grow 19% during this period. The population of Hindus will be expanding by 23%, while the number of Jews in the world will have risen by 10% in these two decades. Moreover, if the current trends were to continue, by 2050, 10% of Europe’s population will be Muslim, and Islam would become the second largest religion in the United States, surpassing Judaism.

Economic Potential of the Muslim World

The Muslim world contributes 8.51% of the global economy. While this is disproportionate to the size of the group’s overall population, the Islamic world is full of economic potential. 53% of the globe’s proven oil and gas reserves are found in the Middle East. These two natural resources alone contribute to over half of all exports from the region.

Several large energy-sector corporations operate in the resource-rich region. Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) has pumped over $30 billion in gas projects in Qatar since the 1990s, which has resulted in the development of 12-14 facilities in the country. Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) has been present in Saudi Arabia for the last 90 years as well, and has played a pivotal role in what is today Saudi Aramco – the second largest company in the world in terms of revenue, which generated $161 billion in profits in 2022, which was thrice of what Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) earned that year.

British Petroleum, or BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) spearheaded oil discovery in the UAE in 1958. In March 2023, the company alongside Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) jointly offered $2 billion to acquire fifty-percent of the stake in NewMed Energy, an Israeli natural gas producer. Later that year in July, BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) invested $10 million in a California-based biofuel firm that plans to set up its first plant in Dubai. Israel has also awarded BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) license to explore gas off the Mediterranean coast.

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