Population in West set to grow to 456 thousand by 2031
Galway Bay fm newsroom - The population in the West is set to grow to 456 thousand by 2031.
That's according to the regional population projection report published by the Central Statistics Office this week.
Three internal migration scenarios are examined for the eight regional authority areas for 2016 to 2031.
In the main traditional migration scenario, the study forecasts that the West will have 97 thousand births and also a population increase of 15 thousand.
The population in the West in 2011 is recorded at 441 thousand - this is forecast to increase to 456 thousand by 2031.
This consists of a natural increase of 31 thousand, a drop in internal migration of six thousand and a drop in external migration of 10 thousand.
Under the same scenario, the greater Dublin area would see its population increase by just over 400 thousand by 2031 if internal migration patterns return to the traditional pattern last observed in the mid-1990s.
The traditional variant combines a slow return to net inward migration and to the 1996 pattern of internal migration by 2016.