Future South Australian Population

7 | Future South Australian Population

The publicised population forecasts for Adelaide fall well short of the growth expected in major eastern cities. This effectively assumes a business as usual approach for the city and for the wider State; that being low growth in industry, population and consumerism.

Current population forecasts for the State propose no substantial changes in how it will look and work in the future. However, this fails to embrace the positives that are already present and that point to a highly liveable and prosperous State.

As Melbourne’s and Sydney’s populations are set to expand dramatically, the sustainability and liveability of the cities can at very least be questioned.

Adelaide will offer an increasingly attractive alternative for these people, providing that industry develops to ensure jobs are there and that social infrastructure matches or betters that of the mega cities.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) have forecast South Australia’s population of 1.7 million people will increase to between 2.43 million to 2.7 million people by 2066. Adelaide’s share of South Australia’s population is predicted to rise to around 80% by 2042. When one considers the many advantages that Adelaide offers, by 2070, Adelaide’s population could potentially almost triple to 3.5 million people, whilst State wide population growth will be limited to around 400,000 people, resulting in a State population of around 3.9 million people by 2070 (1 million more people than predicted by ABS).