CENTRAL Visayas’s population grew to 8.08 million as of last year, said the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
The population in Central Visayas increased from 5.7 million in 2000, or by more than one million every decade. It grew by 685,000 from 7.4 million in 2015.
Ariel Florendo, PSA 7 director, said CV’s population growth is relatively higher as its growth rate rose to 188 percent for the past five years compared to its previous population growth rate of 1.61 percent which was recorded from 2010 to 2015.
Cebu Province has the highest population figures in the region with 3,325,385, followed by Negros Oriental with 1,432,990, Bohol with 1,394,329, and Siquijor with 103,395.
Cebu City is the most populous city in Central Visayas with a total population of 964,169, followed by Lapu-Lapu City with 497,604, and Mandaue City with 364,116.
The 10 most populous cities and municipalities in the region are Talisay City (263,048), Toledo City (207,314), Danao City (156,321), Liloan (153,197), Minglanilla (151,002), Consolacion (148,012), Carcar City (136,453), Dumaguete (134,103), Naga City (133,184), and Bayawan City (122,747).
The 10 least populous cities and towns in Region 7 are Enrique Villanueva in Siquijor (6,790), Sikatuna in Bohol (6,906), Corella in Bohol (9,909), Alburquerque in Bohol (11,246), San Isidro in Bohol (9,909), Tudela (11,304), Sevilla in Bohol (11,376), Lila in Bohol (12,240), Pilar (12,506), and Batuan (13, 845).
Records from PSA also show that the 10 most populous barangays in Central Visayas are Basak in Lapu-Lapu City (71,990), Guadalupe in Cebu City (70,039), Mactan in Lapu-Lapu (50,964), Tisa in Cebu City (47,364), Lahug in Cebu City (45,853), Basak San Nicolas in Cebu City (38,965), Gun-ob (37,989), Yati in Liloan (37,046), Talamban, Cebu City (33,382), and Labangon in Cebu City (32,825).
Florendo said there are two municipalities in Central Visayas— Liloan and Minglanilla, both in Cebu Province—that have more than a total population of 150,000, making them candidates for cityhood. (MVE)