in next with 735,769 or 28.7% of the total, followed by Occidental Mindoro with 421,952 (16.5%), Romblon with 279,774 (10.9%), and Marinduque with 229,636 (9.0%). The population growth rate of the region was posted at 1.49% in 2000-2007, lower than the rates registered in 1995-2000 (2.46%) and 1995-2007 (1.95%). The average annual growth rate in the nineties was 2.6%, while in the eighties it was 2.3%. Table 4. Population size, by Province, 1980, 1990, 1995, 2000 and 2007 MIMAROPA Marinduque Occidental Mindoro Oriental Mindoro Palawan Romblon
1980 1,408,040 173,715 222,431 446,938 371,782 193,174
1990 1,774,074 185,524 282,593 550,049 528,287 227,621
1995 2,033,271 199,910 339,605 608,616 640,486 244,654
2000 2,299,229 217,392 380,250 681,818 755,412 264,357
2007 2,349,283 229,636 421,952 735,769 682,152 279,774
Source: National Statistics Office, Census of Population
Figure 2. Population Distribution, by Province, by Censal Year
1.3.2 Urban-Rural Population Distribution From 1980 to 2000, the urban population grew at an average annual rate of 0.42%, while the rural population grew at a much slower pace of 0.18%. By the year 2020, 33.7% of the region’s total population is expected to be living in urban areas, increasing to 35.1% in 2030. Puerto Princesa City, a highly urbanized city in the region, has 58.0% of its population living in urban areas, as of year 2000. Occidental Mindoro and Palawan are 37.6% and 28.7% urban, respectively.
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The MIMAROPA Region