Islamabad, Dhu-AlHijjah 3, 1438, Aug 25, 2017, SPA -- Pakistan has surpassed Brazil to become the fifth-most populous country on Earth, as the population surged beyond 220 million people, the latest figures showed on Friday. The South Asian nation in March conducted its first population census in two decades, which was possible thanks to improved security after years of violence linked to al-Qaeda and Taliban militants. The officials counted every individual and their housing unit in a door-to-door exercise that lasted for more than two months across the country, said the Pakistani Bureau of Statistic (PBS), which conducted the census. The government released the outcome on Friday, with the figure much higher than the earlier estimate of around 200 million. The population in the country's four provinces and the tribal regions near Afghan border stood at 207.77 million, according to the bureau. Another 15 million people live in the disputed regions of Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan in the north, near the country's border with China, an official at the PBS told dpa. But the population of these two regions are not included along with that of Pakistan's because of the disputes, although people from these areas possess Pakistani passports. -- SPA 22:06 LOCAL TIME 19:06 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w473999