Demographic growth or decline?
Demographic growth or decline?
Statbel, the Belgian statistical office, publishes the Census 2021: an opportunity to take stock of population trends per municipality between 1 January 2011, the date of the last Census, and 1 January 2021. Which municipalities grew demographically? Which ones saw their population decline? We will tell you all about it...
In Belgium, the population grew by 5.2% between the Census 2011 and the Census 2021. Even though there was a bigger increase in the Brussels-Capital Region (9%), compared to the Flemish Region and the Walloon Region (5.5% and 3.5%, respectively), a growth is observed in all three regions.
The municipalities that grew the most were in the centre and the south of the country, mainly in the province of Luxembourg, whereas the municipalities in decline are predominantly situated close to the border, particularly along the French border.
In the Brussels-Capital Region, the top three municipalities with the biggest demographic growth between 1 January 2011 and 1 January 2021 are Evere with +18%, Brussels with +14.5% and Anderlecht with +13%. The only municipality in decline was Saint-Josse-ten-Noode (-0.9%).
In the Flemish Region, the municipality Machelen grew by 17.2% between the two Censuses. Increases of 15.5% and 13.6% were recorded for Drogenbos and Hemiksem. In general, Flemish Brabant saw its population grow by 7% over these 10 years, thereby outranking the province of Antwerp (+6.3%), East Flanders (+5.9%), Limburg (+4.2%) and West Flanders (+3.3%).
Conversely, the municipalities of Herstappe in Limburg, Horebeke in East Flanders and Knokke-Heist in West Flanders saw their populations fall by 8.2%, 3.3% and 2.6% respectively.
In the Walloon Region, Vresse-sur-Semois in the province of Namur had the biggest decline in population between 2011 and 2021 with -8.5%, before Spa in the province of Liege (-3.8%) and Dour in the province of Hainaut (-2.4%).
In general, the provinces of Luxembourg and Walloon Brabant are distinguished from the other Walloon provinces by a higher growth in population. It is 6.4% for these two provinces, compared to 4.2% in the province of Namur, 3% in the province of Liège and 2.2% in Hainaut. In Luxembourg, the growth is particularly high in Leglise (18.9%) and Bertogne (18.1%). The only municipalities in that province that saw their population decline were Bouillon, Virton, Saint-Hubert and La Roche-en-Ardenne.
The “population” represented here by municipality is the total population living in Belgium on 1 January 2021, or 11,521,238 inhabitants.
As in 2011, high population densities are found along a line that runs from Antwerp to Brussels, through Mechelen, along the Sambre-Meuse line and around Verviers.
The area that spreads between Roeselare and Mouscron through Kortrijk and Waregem is also densely populated. On the Brussels-Arlon-Luxembourg line, the main urban centres are situated between Brussels and Namur (Wavre, Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve and Gembloux). Beyond Namur, only Arlon has 30,000 inhabitants. The south of the Sambre-Meuse line, from the south of the province of Hainaut to the south of the province of Liège, consists of sparsely populated municipalities.
The population density is calculated as the ratio between the number of inhabitants of each municipality and its area.
The map confirms and strengthens the vision of the current Belgian population as visible on the total population map. As in 2011, some large, densely populated urban areas (1,000 inhabitants and more per km²) appear around the Brussels-Capital Region, Antwerp, Liège, Charleroi and Ghent.
With scarce exceptions, all municipalities with fewer than 100 inhabitants per km² are located in the south of the Sambre-Meuse line.
The sex ratio is the number of women for 100 men.
In general in Belgium, there are slightly more women than men: the sex ratio amounts to 103. It was 104 in 2011. There are few regional differences: this indicator varies from 102 in the Flemish Region to 104 in the two other regions. This ratio changes the most in the Brussels-Capital Region, from 106 women for 100 men in 2011 to 104 in 2021.
The top 4 municipalities with the most female population are situated in the south of the Brussels-Capital Region, while the municipalities with a mostly male population are mainly located in the City of Brussels and in the provinces of East Flanders, Antwerp, Limburg and Luxembourg.
The Census 2021 in a nutshell
The Census 2021 is a snapshot of the population living in Belgium on 1 January 2021. It provides a wide range of figures on housing and demographic, socio-economic and educational characteristics of the citizens. The objective of the Census is twofold: to comply with the European regulation[1] and to produce statistics to address national specific needs (public services, international organizations, researchers, enterprises and private individuals).
Previously based on an exhaustive survey of all citizens, since 2011 the Census has been based exclusively on the use of administrative databases.
Definitions
The various statistical units
Population
The population taken into account for the Census 2021 is the residential population, as registered in the National Register of Natural Persons (RNPP) on 1 January 2021. The Belgian population includes Belgians and non-Belgians who have been allowed or authorised to settle or to stay in Belgium but does not include non-Belgians living on the territory for less than three months, asylum seekers and non-Belgians in an illegal situation[2].
Private households
This group includes people living alone in a dwelling and groups of several people living in the same dwelling and providing themselves with essentials for living.
Family nuclei
A family nucleus is defined as two or more persons who belong to the same household and who are related as husband and wife, as partners in a registered partnership, as partners in a consensual union, or as parent and child.
Living quarters
Living quarters refer to all quarters used as the usual residence of one or several persons.
Conventional dwellings
Conventional dwellings are separate units (surrounded by walls and covered by a roof) that are independent (with a direct access from the street or a staircase, passage) and designed to be used as a permanent dwelling.
Occupied conventional dwellings
Occupied conventional dwellings are conventional dwellings used as the usual residence of one or several private households.
Variables and their description
Sex
This variable is used to distinguish men from women.
Age
The age reached in completed years of age on 1 January 2021.
Place of usual residence
The place of residence is that registered in the National Register on 1 January 2021. So this is the place of legal residence.
The Belgian municipalities have changed between 2011 and 2021. In the comparisons shown on this website, the figures for 2011 are broken down according to the municipalities of 2021.
Locality
A locality is defined as a distinct population cluster, that is an area defined by population living in neighbouring or contiguous buildings. This area constitutes a group of buildings, none of which is separated from its nearest neighbour by more than 200 meters.
The Belgian municipalities have changed between 2011 and 2021. In the comparisons shown on this website, the figures for 2011 are broken down according to the municipalities of 2021.
Remark
The comparison with the previous Census requires some caution: this publication is based on the Belgian population and the Census 2011 has as reference the European definition of the population.
Information on the difference between the Belgian population and the Census 2011 population.
[1] COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) 2017/543 of 22 March 2017 laying down rules for the application of Regulation (EC) No 763/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council on population and housing censuses as regards the technical specifications of the topics and of their breakdowns.
[2]Information on the difference between the Belgian population and the Census 2011 population.