The people of Australia
Australia's population
Australia’s estimated population is currently over 22,662,190. Projected growth rates according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics show:
- One birth every 1 minute and 46 seconds;
- One death every 3 minutes and 40 seconds;
- A net gain of one international migration every 3 minute and 05 seconds , leading to;
- An overall total population increase of one person every 1 minute and 37 seconds.
Population growth
Australia's population grew by 1.5% during the year ended 31 December 2010. Natural increase and net overseas migration contributed 47% and 53% respectively to total population growth for the year ended 31 December 2010.
All states and territories experienced positive population growth for the year ended 31 December 2010. Western Australia recorded the fastest growth (2.1%) and Tasmania and the Northern Territory the slowest (both 0.8%).
The average Australian age
The median age in Australia is 36.9 years, 4.8 years higher than it was a decade ago. Low fertility and increased life expectancy have drastically changed the face of Australia. The proportion of people aged 65+ years is expected to nearly double in the next 30 years from 13.3% of the population to over 25%. This is expected to put pressure on resources to the extent that the Federal budget will likely be pushed into deficit.
Ethnicity in Australia
Thirty-one percent of Australians claim English descent, compared to 37% who call themselves Australian. In 2006, at the time of the most recent census, 5 million residents reported being born outside Australia, making up 24% of the population. These were mainly from the UK (1,153,000), New Zealand (476,719) and China (279,000).
Fifty percent of Australians claim to have at least one parent who is not native to Australia, and the fastest growing group within this statistic is white immigrants from African countries, particularly South Africa and Zimbabwe.
Urban population
Australia, though vast, is one of the most urbanised countries in the world. Ninety-one percent of the country’s population live in urban areas, and around 68% live in the south and eastern states, although there is evidence of a slow trend north and over to Western Australia.
It is interesting to note that Aborigine populations are disproportionately distributed, with 32% of the population of the Northern Territories being made up by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders compared with only 0.6% of Victoria’s population being of Aboriginal descent.
Literacy in Australia
Literacy and education in Australia rate highly as with other OECD countries. It is estimated that 99% of the population is literate, though there is some debate that the literacy rates within indigenous communities are not reflective of the country in general.
Employment in Australia
Over the past 20 years, the proportion of Australia’s working age population (15-64 years) has increased from 66.9% to 67.6%. This excess is expected to be short-lived, as the first wave of baby boomers (those born in 1946) will leave the workforce this year in 2011 and the number of 15-year olds entering the workforce will decrease due to lower fertility rates over the preceding 10 years to 2011.
Australia's unemployment rate is holding steady at 4.9% (June 2011).
In the year to August 2010, full-time adult ordinary time earnings rose by 4.2% for males and 4.7% for females.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics
