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Number: 2003-19
Date Released: January 31, 2003
ILOCOS REGION:
TO REACH FIVE MILLIONTH MARK IN NINE YEARS
(Results from the 2000 Census of Population and Housing, NSO)

Population to double in 32 years

Ilocos Region which covered the provinces of Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union and Pangasinan, recorded a total population of 4,200,478 persons in the 2000 Census of Population and Housing (Census 2000). This was up by 396,588 persons as compared to the 1995 Census of Population (POPCEN). For the period 1995 to 2000, the annual population growth rate for Ilocos Region was 2.15 percent, higher than that of the 1990 to 1995 period (1.30 percent). If the current annual population growth rate of the region continues, the population is expected to double in 32 years and to reach five million in nine years, increasing on the average, by almost 90 thousand persons a year or about 10 persons per hour.

The number of households increased to 831,549 as compared to 740,136 households in 1995. The average household size recorded in Census 2000 was 5.05 persons, lower than the 1995 figure of 5.13 persons and slightly higher than the national average of five persons.

Median age was 22 years

Ilocos Region had a median age of 22 years. This meant that in 2000, half of the population were below 22 years old. In 1995, the median age was 21 years.

Among the four provinces, Pangasinan had the youngest median age of 22 years, followed by La Union with 23 years and Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur, both with 24 years.

Sex ratio was recorded at 101

In Census 2000, the recorded sex ratio was 101 males for every 100 females, the same sex ratio recorded in 1995.

Overall dependency ratio was 68

The proportion of young dependents (0 to 14 years) was 35.1 percent, while the proportion of old dependents (65 years and over) accounted for 5.6 percent of the regional population. The proportion of economically active population (15 to 64 years) thus, made up 59.4 percent.

The overall dependency ratio in 2000 was 68.41. This meant that for every 100 persons aged 15 to 64 years, there were about 68 dependents (59 young dependents and nine old dependents)

Eight in ten were Roman Catholics

Majority (81.56 percent) of the population of Ilocos Region were Roman Catholics. Aglipayan (5.52 percent) and Iglesia ni Cristo (3.02 percent), followed. About 9.56 percent belonged to other religious affiliations.

About 95 percent were literate

The proportion of household population 10 years old and over in Ilocos Region who were able to read and write a simple message was 95.23 percent. Males (95.41 percent) literacy rate was almost the same as that of the females (95.04 percent).

La Union (95.89 percent) had the highest literacy rate among the four provinces in Ilocos Region. Pangasinan (95.45 percent) and Ilocos Norte (94.71 percent), followed. Ilocos Sur (94.09 percent) had the least proportion of literates.

Average number of children ever-born was three

The average number of children ever-born in Ilocos Region was three, the same with all provinces in Ilocos Region.

Ilocos Norte had the highest proportion of ever-married women with three children (20.81 percent), followed by Pangasinan at 16.25 percent.

Majority of the overseas workers were females

Ilocos Region registered a total of 94,111 overseas workers in Census 2000 as compared to 90,994 overseas workers in 1995 POPCEN. Three in five (61.75 percent) of these overseas workers were females. About 19 percent of the overseas workers were in the age group of 25 to 29 years.

The overseas workers in Ilocos Region had a median age of 33 years. This meant that half of the overseas workers were below 33 years old. Female overseas workers had a median age of 32 years, younger than their male counterparts (35 years).

Electricity, main source of lighting

Majority (79.31 percent) of the households used electricity for lighting and 17.12 percent still used kerosene. Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) as fuel for lighting was utilized by 0.99 percent of the total households.

Ilocos Norte (88.98 percent) had the highest proportion of households using electricity as the main source of lighting, while Pangasinan had the lowest proportion at 76.24 percent. About 19.43 percent still used kerosene in Pangasinan.

One in two households used liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for cooking

In 2000, majority of the households used liquefied petroleum gas (53.09 percent) as fuel for cooking. A large proportion still used wood (34.93 percent) and only 2.35 percent used electricity for cooking.

Two in six households exclusively used water sealed, sewer/septic tank

The proportion of households with water sealed, sewer/septic tank, used exclusively was 34.95 percent. About 32 percent had water sealed, other depository used exclusively by the households. Households which did not have any toilet facility accounted for 1.49 percent.

Burning was the usual manner of garbage disposal

Proper disposal of garbage lead to a good environment and good health. About 66 percent of the households in Ilocos Region disposed their garbage through burning; 12.47 percent, dumping in individual pit; and 11.00 percent, picked-up by a garbage truck.

Pangasinan had the highest proportion of households whose usual manner of garbage disposal was through burning (68.59 percent) while the lowest was Ilocos Norte (54.74 percent). On the other hand, Ilocos Norte had the highest proportion of households whose garbage was picked up by a garbage truck (16.96 percent).

Eight in ten households owned/amortized housing units

Majority (83.37 percent) of the households owned/amortized their houses. Those who occupied the housing units for free with consent of owner comprised 10.40 percent while 2.86 percent rented the housing units.

(Sgd.) CARMELITA N. ERICTA
Administrator

Table 1. Total Population Distribution by Province: Ilocos, 2000
 

Province       Total Population                 Percent          
  Ilocos 4,200,478 100.00
     Ilocos Norte 514,241 12.24
     Ilocos Sur 594,206 14.15
     La Union 657,945 15.66
     Pangasinan    2,434,086 57.95
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 2. Total Population by Age Group, Sex and Sex Ratio: Ilocos, 2000
 

   Age Group       Total Population         Male         Female       Sex Ratio   
  Ilocos 4,200,478 2,108,238 2,092,240 100.76
     Under 1 100,230 51,847 48,383 107.16
       1 - 4 389,670 199,909 189,761 105.35
       5 - 9 500,183 256,561 243,622 105.31
     10 - 14 482,806 245,909 236,897 103.80
     15 - 19 442,527 226,653 215,874 104.99
     20 - 24 375,831 191,287 184,544 103.65
     25 - 29 320,709 163,334 157,375 103.79
     30 - 34 297,337 151,266 146,071 103.56
     35 - 39 262,702 133,487 129,215 103.31
     40 - 44 225,788 113,373 112,415 100.85
     45 - 49 185,194 92,222 92,972 99.19
     50 - 54 160,192 78,332 81,860 95.69
     55 - 59 119,512 57,333 62,179 92.21
     60 - 64 104,434 48,439 55,995 86.51
     65 - 69 77,584 34,669 42,915 80.79
     70 - 74 59,216 25,255 33,961 74.36
     75 - 79 45,712 18,901 26,811 70.50
     80 and over 50,851 19,461 31,390 62.00
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 3. Literacy of Household Population 10 Years Old and Over by Age Group and Sex:
Ilocos, 2000
 

      Age Group             Literate             Illiterate      
  Both Sexes         Male             Female         Both Sexes         Male             Female      
  Ilocos 3,053,409 1,524,216 1,529,193 152,992 73,262 79,730
     10-14 458,259 232,494 225,765 24,407 13,361 11,046
     15-19 431,753 220,040 211,713 10,100 6,245 3,855
     20-24 367,423 186,215 181,208 7,611 4,598 3,013
     25-29 313,262 158,843 154,419 6,882 4,109 2,773
     30-34 289,155 146,627 142,528 7,694 4,269 3,425
     35-39 255,109 129,431 125,678 7,249 3,830 3,419
     40-44 218,139 109,225 108,914 7,371 3,960 3,411
     45-49 177,706 88,386 89,320 7,256 3,691 3,565
     50-54 151,212 74,009 77,203 8,808 4,217 4,591
     55-59 110,768 53,407 57,361 8,675 3,890 4,785
     60-64 94,029 44,018 50,011 10,326 4,387 5,939
     65-69 67,285 30,761 36,524 10,247 3,886 6,361
     70 and over 119,309 50,760 68,549 36,366 12,819 23,547
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 4. Disabled Persons by Type of Disability and Sex: Ilocos, 2000
 

            Type of Disability                       Both Sexes                       Male                       Female           
  Ilocos 52,715 25,704 27,011
     Low vision 15,928 6,506 9,422
     Mentally retarded 5,222 2,677 2,545
     Oral defect 4,721 2,496 2,225
     Hard of hearing 3,937 1,884 2,053
     Quadriplegic 3,419 1,877 1,542
     Partial blindness 3,235 1,630 1,605
     Others 16,253 8,634 7,619
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 5. Average Number of Children Ever-Born to Ever-Married Women 15 to 49 Years Old
by Age Group and Province: Ilocos, 2000
 

Age Group Ever Married
  Women 15-49  
Years Old		   Ilocos   Province
  Ilocos Norte      Ilocos Sur         La Union        Pangasinan  
  Average Number  
of Children
Ever-born		 634,656 2.82 2.65 2.74 2.74 2.90
15-19 19,405 0.54 0.65 0.60 0.62 0.49
20-24 76,697 1.23 1.28 1.21 1.21 1.22
25-29 110,126 1.94 1.96 1.88 1.87 1.97
30-34 123,771 2.71 2.50 2.55 2.62 2.81
35-39 115,491 3.35 3.04 3.23 3.24 3.48
40-44 102,868 3.87 3.45 3.63 3.65 4.08
45-49 86,298 4.10 3.71 4.04 4.05 4.22
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 6. Ever-Married Women 15-49 Years Old by Age Group and Province: Ilocos, 2000
 

Age Group      Ilocos        Province  
  Ilocos Norte     Ilocos Sur        La Union        Pangasinan  
Total Number
  of Ever-Married  
Women		 634,656 78,655 89,417 100,214 366,370
15-19 19,405 2,263 2,709 2,753 11,680
20-24 76,697 8,635 10,457 12,248 45,357
25-29 110,126 13,567 14,954 17,358 64,247
30-34 123,771 15,429 17,261 19,327 71,754
35-39 115,491 14,676 16,775 18,352 65,688
40-44 102,868 12,972 14,536 16,571 58,789
45-49 86,298 11,113 12,725 13,605 48,855
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 7. Overseas Workers 10 Years Old and Over by Age Group and Sex: Ilocos, 2000
 

         Age Group                   Both Sexes                      Male                         Female            
  Ilocos 94,111 35,998 58,113

   Below 20

 9,270 2,920 6,350

         20-24

 10,949 3,360 7,589

         25-29

 17,425 6,085 11,340

         30-34

 16,710 6,159 10,551

         35-39

 13,721 5,369 8,352

         40-44

 10,830 4,732 6,098

   45 years old and over  

 15,206 7,373 7,833
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 8. Language/Dialect Generally Spoken in the Households: Ilocos, 2000
 

     Language/Dialect         Number of Households              Percent          

  Ilocos

 831,549 100.00

    Ilocano

 551,786 66.36

    Pangasinan/Pangalato

 224,912 27.05

    Tagalog

 26,662 3.21

    Kankanay/Kankanaey/Kankanai  

 9,929 1.19

    Bolinao

 9,410 1.13

    Other local language/dialect

 8,345 1.00

    Other foreign language/dialect

 505 0.06
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 9. Household Population by Top Nine Religious Affiliations and Sex: Ilocos, 2000
 

  Religious Affiliation     Both Sexes         Male           Female    
  Ilocos 4,196,276 2,105,697 2,090,579
    Roman Catholic 3,422,651 1,720,152 1,702,499
    Aglipayan 231,725 117,333 114,392
    Iglesia ni Cristo 126,644 63,323 63,321
    Evangelicals 115,868 56,776 59,092
    United Methodist 38,050 18,883 19,167
    Jehovah’s Witness 37,747 18,132 19,615
    United of Church of Christ in the Philippines   31,140 15,555 15,585
    Other Protestant 14,870 7,455 7,415
    Others 163,756 80,671 83,085
    Unknown 11,279 5,876 5,403
    None 2,546 1,541 1,005
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 10. Households by Type of Fuel Used for Lighting and Province: Ilocos, 2000
 

Province Total
Households		 Type of Fuel Used for Lighting
  Electricity     Kerosene       LPG         Oil         Others    
  Ilocos 831,549 659,464 142,397 8,219 1,008 20,461
    Ilocos Norte 106,939 95,158 9,306 681 136 1,658
    Ilocos Sur 119,212 94,936 20,886 799 160 2,431
    La Union 127,579 105,066 19,363 750 34 2,366
    Pangasinan   477,819 364,304 92,842 5,989 678 14,006
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 11. Households by Usual Manner of Garbage Disposal and Province: Ilocos, 2000
 
Province Total
Households		 Usual Manner of Garbage Disposal
Picked
-Up by
 Garbage 
Truck		 Dumping
in
 Individual 
Pit		  Burning   Composting   Burying  Feeding
to
 Animals 		  Others 
  Ilocos 831,549 91,435 103,680 552,444 40,666 25,905 15,818 1,601
    Ilocos Norte 106,939 18,132 13,859 58,542 8,382 2,566 5,161 297
    Ilocos Sur 119,212 10,690 16,854 80,097 5,837 2,615 2,691 428
    La Union 127,579 17,650 15,546 86,083 2,232 4,712 1,265 91
    Pangasinan   477,819 44,963 57,421 327,722 24,215 16,012 6,701 785
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 12. Households by Main Source of Water Supply for Drinking and/or Cooking and Province: Ilocos, 2000
 

Province Total
House-
holds		 Main Source of Water Supply for Drinking and/or Cooking
Own Use
Faucet,
Commu-
nity
Water
System		 Shared
Faucet,
Commu-
nity
Water
System		 Own Use
Tubed/
Piped
Deep
Well		 Shared
Tubed/
Piped
Deep
Well		 Tubed/
Piped
Shallow
Well		 Dug
Well		 Spring,
Lake,
River,
Rain,
etc.		 Peddler Bottled
Water		 Others
  Ilocos 831,549 140,063 73,907 193,572 213,053 124,099 57,572 18,763 1,047 819 8,654
    Ilocos Norte 106,939 24,806 6,915 18,140 16,878 13,576 22,013 3,640 41 138 792
    Ilocos Sur 119,212 21,035 11,010 32,769 27,327 16,924 5,567 3,078 42 37 1,423
    La Union 127,579 17,196 15,441 26,989 31,519 17,711 8,701 8,347 142 243 1,290
    Pangasinan   477,819 77,026 40,541 115,674 137,329 75,888 21,291 3,698 822 401 5,149
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 13. Households by Presence of Household Conveniences and Province: Ilocos, 2000
 

Province Total
Households
with at Least
One
Household
Convenience		 Presence of Household Conveniences
Radio/
 Cassette 		  Television   Refrigerator/ 
Freezer		 Video
Cassette/
 Recorder 		  Telephone/ 
 Cellphone 		  Washing 
Machine		  Motorized 
Vehicle
  Ilocos 703,268 664,810 518,466 286,209 169,610 115,839 137,404 140,785
    Ilocos Norte 93,957 90,377 65,834 45,905 21,230 15,607 16,571 24,524

    Ilocos Sur

 100,282 95,726 66,954 42,062 24,204 17,911 18,361 27,019
    La Union 109,451 102,816 81,609 48,108 29,358 19,754 23,274 17,525
    Pangasinan   399,578 375,891 304,069 150,134 94,818 62,567 79,198 71,717

Table 14. Households by Land Ownership and Province: Ilocos, 2000
 

Province Total
Households
with at Least
One Land
Owned		 Land Ownership
 Other Residential 
Land		   Agricultural Land   Agricultural
  Land Acquired  
through CARP		  Other Land 
  Ilocos 294,320 135,985 210,893 24,482 20,937
    Ilocos Norte 48,085 18,607 41,060 2,956 4,335

    Ilocos Sur

 49,710 21,760 38,529 2,712 5,721
    La Union 43,906 17,695 14,670 2,289 2,227
    Pangasinan   152,619 77,923 96,634 16,525 8,654
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 15. Households in Occupied Housing Units by Tenure Status of the Housing Unit
and Province: Ilocos, 2000
 

Province Total
Households
in Occupied
Housing
Units		 Tenure Status of the Housing Unit
 Owned/Being 
Amortized		    Rented      Being Occupied  
for free with
Consent of
the Owner		   Being Occupied  
for free without
Consent of
the Owner		  Not Reported 
  Ilocos 831,549 693,227 23,813 86,516 23,680 24,313
    Ilocos Norte 106,939 90,730 3,312 10,868 267 1,762

    Ilocos Sur

 119,212 103,203 2,088 11,025 352 2,544
    La Union 127,579 100,700 5,188 18,136 730 2,825
    Pangasinan   477,819 398,594 13,225 46,487 2,331 17,182
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

 

TECHNICAL NOTES

Average Household Size – average number of people who live in the household

Growth Rate – the rate at which the population is increasing (or decreasing) in a given year due to natural increase and net migration, expressed as a percentage of the base population

Median Age – the age at which exactly half of the population is young and half is old

Sex Ratio – the ratio of males to females in a given population expressed as the number of males per 100 females

Age-Dependency Ratio – the ratio of persons in the "dependent" ages (under 15 years and over 64 years) to those in the "economically productive" ages (15 to 64 years old) in the population

Household – a social unit consisting of a person or a group of persons who sleep in the same housing unit and have common arrangements in the preparation and consumption of food

Literacy Rate – the proportion of literates to the total population in a given group

The 2000 Census of Population and Housing (Census 2000) was undertaken by the National Statistics Office (NSO) in May 2000, as mandated by Commonwealth Act No. 591, Batas Pambansa Blg. 72 and Executive Order No. 121. It was the 11th census of population and 5th census of housing undertaken in this country since the first census in 1903. It was designed to take an inventory of the total population and housing units all over the Philippines and to collect information about their characteristics. Census day for the Census 2000 was May 1, 2000 (12:01 a.m.). Enumeration started on May 1, 2000 and lasted for about 30 days.

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Page last revised: July 18, 2003