“The resident population in Portugal, on December 31, 2023, was estimated at 10,639,726 inhabitants, which meant an increase of 1.16% compared to the previous year’s value”, highlighted INE in the Regional Statistical Yearbooks.

INE justified the increase in the resident population last year as the result of “the combination of a positive change in the migratory component (1.47%) and a decrease in the natural component (-0.31%)”.

The same source stated that the resident population increased in “25 of the 26 NUTS III sub-regions of the country” between 2022 and 2023, the only exception being the Alto Alentejo, which suffered a population decrease of 0.21%.

In the opposite direction, the West (2.43%) and the Region of Aveiro (2.08%) were those that recorded the highest rates of effective growth in the resident population.

“In 251 of the country's 308 municipalities (81%) there was population growth, particularly in municipalities located on the coastal strip of the Mainland and in the Autonomous Region of Madeira”, INE also highlighted.

The Institute responsible for statistics in Portugal highlighted that the increase in population was recorded in all municipalities that make up the sub-regions of Greater Lisbon, Península de Setúbal and Autonomous Region of Madeira, where the municipality with the highest population growth is located (Porto Santo, with 3.70%).

INE countered that 56 municipalities had negative effective population growth rates, the majority of which are located in the interior of the North and Alentejo, a region that is home to the municipality with the lowest rate in Portugal (Barrancos, with less than 1.87% ).

The trend recorded in the migratory component “extended to all NUTS III sub-regions of the country”, said INE, pointing out the West sub-regions (2.79%), Aveiro Region (2.41%), Médio Tejo (2.17%), Alentejo Litoral (2.15%) and Leiria Region (2.03%) as those that contributed most to the increase in the resident population.

“The natural component of population growth recorded decreases in all NUTS III sub-regions of the country, with the exception of Greater Lisbon, where there was a slight increase of 0.02%”, stated the National Statistics Institute, highlighting that the main falls were felt in Alto Tâmega and Barroso, with 1.20% less, and in Beira Baixa, with 1.18% less.

The yearbooks also reflect an increase in the population aging index from 184.4 in 2022 to 188.1 in 2023, clarifying that this indicator “is measured by the ratio between the elderly population (65 years or over) and the young population ( up to 14 years old)”.

The aging index by NUTS III subregions shows that “in 2023, aging was more intense in the Interior of the Continent, with particular emphasis on Alto Tâmega and Barroso, Terras de Trás-os-Montes, Beira Baixa and Beiras and Serra of Estrela, where the number of elderly people per 100 young people was more than 300”.