One in four Koreans live in Gyeonggi Province!
Createdd 2016-10-07 Hit 536
Contents
Gyeonggi Province’s population
ticks over 13 million; Suwon and Yongin see meteoric increases in population
On September 27, the Gyeonggi Provincial Government
announced that the province’s population – including both domestic and foreign residents – exceeded
13 million as of the end of August this year. Source image ⓒ Gyeonggi G-News
On September 27, the Gyeonggi Provincial Government announced that the province’s population – including both domestic and foreign residents
– exceeded 13 million as of the end of August this year.
According to residential
population statistics from the Ministry of the Interior and alien registration
statistics from the Ministry of Justice, Gyeonggi Province’s population
as of August 2016 stood at 12,649,894 domestic residents and 369,983 alien
residents. This put the total population for Gyeonggi Province at 13,019,877.
The total population of Korea at the end of August was 52,792,070, which means that
one in four Koreans lives in Gyeonggi Province.
Regarding the analysis, the provincial
government explained that the increase was due more to societal effects than
natural increases, with people from other regions moving into Gyeonggi rather
than more babies being born in the province.
Gyeonggi Province had a
population of 10 million by the end of December in 2002. The latest figures show
that the population increased steadily by 3.02 million over the past 13 years
and eight months up to August 2016. On average, 605 more people were added to
Gyeonggi Province each day. In December of 2003, Gyeonggi Province’s population
reached 10,361,638, surpassing Seoul, which stood at 10,276,968, for the first
time.
As of this past August, the
population of Seoul was 10,239,672. Compared to 1967 when the Gyeonggi
Provincial Government relocated from Seoul to Suwon, Gyeonggi Province’s population
has risen by 10 million. At the end of 1967, the population of Gyeonggi was
3,070,797.
From 2003 to June 2016, the
natural population increase of Gyeonggi Province was 948,209, but social
factors added 1,609,930 residents, a difference of 661,721 people.
Breaking down the numbers by
region, Gyeonggi Province received a net increase of 1,397,825 people from
Seoul (migration), followed by Busan with 60,289 people, Gyeongsangbuk-do with
56,780 people, and Daegu with 52,284 people. Meanwhile, Chungcheongnam-do had
the largest net increase in population (migration) from Gyeonggi Province with
54,616 people, followed by Incheon with 21,859 people, Sejong with 21,558
people, Chungcheongbuk-do with 17,538 people, and Jeju with 14,198 people.
With regards to the reason why
so many residents moved to Gyeonggi Province from Seoul, the Gyeonggi Provincial
Government cited lower housing costs, the development of new city projects, and
reinforced transportation network as playing a crucial role. The province
determined that people moved into Gyeonggi Province because housing prices were
lower relative to those of Seoul, while transportation conditions were
relatively good.
The added number of businesses
in Gyeonggi Province was another reason for the population increase. More
people came to Gyeonggi Province in search of job opportunities.
According to analysis results
released by Gyeonggi Province, the number of businesses in Seoul increased from
735,258 in 2002 to 812,798 in 2014, an increase of 77,540. The number of
businesses in Gyeonggi Province, however, increased from 540,754 to 810,260
during the same period, an increase of 269,506. Considering the upward trend,
Gyeonggi Province estimates that the province would have hosted the largest
number of businesses by the end of 2015. Statistics as of the end of 2015 will
be released by the end of this year.
Suwon was home to the largest
population base with 1,227,704 people, followed by Goyang with 1,046,502
people, and Yongin with 1,000,945 people. Yeoncheon had the lowest population
with 46,958 people, followed by Gapyeong with 63,756 people, and Gwacheon with
66,328 people, indicating that the population gap was significant between
different cities and counties in Gyeonggi Province.
In all, 28 cities and counties
across Gyeonggi Province saw their populations increase. Yongin recorded the
largest population jump with an increase of 471,645 since 2002, followed by
Hwaseong with an added 429,318 people, Namyangju with 273,756 people, Goyang
with 206,157 people, Suwon with 203,829 people, and Paju with 200,622 people.
Meanwhile, three cities and
counties saw their populations decrease. Gwacheon’s population
dropped by 4,388 people, followed by Yeoncheon with 3,697 fewer people, and
Guri by 1,649 people.
Kim Jin-kyung jinkyoungkim@kg21.net
