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2011 Census of Population & Housing - Jamaica
ii
of births. Birth rates have fallen from an average of 24.2 per 1000 between 1991 and
2001 to 17.4 per 1000 between 2001 and 2011. At the same time there has been a small
upturn in death rates from 6.4 between 1991 and 2001 to 7.1 in the most recent period.
While additions to the population from natural increase (the difference between births
and deaths) amounted to approximately 259,000 between 2001 and 2011, migration
levels have remained high. Net migration of 168,700 over the period reduced the
natural increment by approximately 65 per cent. Table (ii) presents the components of
population growth for the one hundred years since 1911.
Table (ii) Components of Population Growth: 1911-2011
Census
Year
Population
Births, deaths and migration in intercensal period
Births
Deaths
Natural
increase
Migration
Crude Rates
Births
Deaths
Natural
Increase
1911
831,383
1921
858,118
320,200 216,400
103,800
-77,100
37.9
25.6
12.3
1943
1,237,063
765,300 412,200
353,100
+25,800
33.2
17.9
15.3
1960
1,609,814
855,500 287,500
568,000
-195,200
35.3
11.9
23.4
1970
1,848,512
676,500 141,300
535,200
-296,500
39.1
8.2
30.9
1982
2,190,357
747,788 188,993
558,795
-216,959
30.9
7.8
23.1
1991
b
2,380,666
505,844 133,973
371,871
-181,601
24.6
6.5
18.1
2001
2,607,632
603,090 159,733
443,357
-216,392
24.2
6.4
17.8
2011
2,697,983
438,318 179,253
259,065
-168,714
17.4
7.1
10.3
Geographic Distribution
The ranking of the parishes have remained more or less the same since 1960 with the
most populous parishes being St Andrew, St Catherine and Clarendon accounting for
21 per cent, 19 per cent and 9 per cent respectively of the total population. The parish of
Kingston has continued the decline evident since that time. Table (iii) presents the
parish distribution from the censuses of 1960, 2001 and 2011. The changed position of
the parish of St Catherine is evident. In 1960 this parish accounted for 9 per cent of the
total population. By 2011 this percentage had more than doubled to 19 per cent. The
table also shows that this increase in the percentage share of the parish of St Catherine
has occurred simultaneously with a declining share of the parish of St Andrew.