According to preliminary results from the 2010 Census, the population of The Bahamas has increased by over 16 percent during the past decade.
This compares to 19 percent growth during the 1990 to 2000 period.
Statistics show that the country’s population went from 303,611 in 2000 to 353,658 in 2010.
Director of Statistics Kelsie Dorsett says that declines in the population of the main islands, New Providence and Grand Bahama, played a role in the slowing of population growth over the past deacde.
New Providence saw an increase of roughly 28 percent during the period of 1990 to 2000, but recorded only an 18 percent increase over the last decade. The island’s population currently stands at 248,948 compared to the previous decade’s population of 210,832.
Grand Bahama dropped from a 15 percent increase in the previous census period to a 10 percent increase between 2000-2010.
The greatest population decline was on Cat Island, which recorded a decrease of nine percent.
The closing of the Club Med resort on San Salvador contributed to a decline in population of four percent on that island, compared to over 100 percent increase in the previous census.
Exuma’s population has more than doubled in the past decade, growing from 3,571 in 2000 to 7,314 in 2010.
