Population during each president's tenure

Every president since 1991, ranked by how population changed from their first day in office. Politare shows what happened during a tenure; it does not claim the office-holder caused it.

#	President	In office	Total	Per year	Chart
1	Bashar al-Assad	17 Jul 2000 – 8 Dec 2024	+48.3% 2000 → 2024	+1.7%/yr

Sorted by total, highest first. Every row is indexed to the last count complete before the first day in office ("from" marks a start that had to move because that count had no data, or because the period cut it); Levels are per cent changes, rates are differences in %; "per year" compounds levels and divides rates. Tenures with under 12 months, or under three observations, are left out. millions, mid-year estimate · World Bank (SP.POP.TOTL) from the UN's World Population Prospects, mid-year, the people living in Syria (refugees abroad not counted); the last census was in 2004 · Syria data · as of Jul 2026.