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Donegal

Land Mass 485,951 ha
% of Ireland 6.9%
Population Density (2016) 32.76 persons per sq km
Donegal

Human Resource

County Population 2016 159,152
Population Change (2011–2016) -1.2%

Top 15 Centres of Population (2016)

Letterkenny 19,274
Buncrana 6,785
Ballybofey-Stranorlar 4,852
Donegal 2,618
Carndonagh 2,471
Ballyshannon 2,299
Bundoran 1,963
Lifford 1,626
Convoy 1,526
Bunbeg-Derrybeg 1,491
Moville 1,480
Ramelton 1,266
Killybegs 1,236
Muff 1,226
Dungloe-An Clochán Liath 1,164

Source: CSO Census of Population 2016

Highest level of education completed by persons whose education has ceased

No Formal/Primary (21.9%)
Secondary (44.7%)
Third Level (33.4%)

Source: CSO Census of Population 2016

Natural Resources

Average Farm Size (2010) 27.9 ha
Farming, Fishing & Forestry workers (2016) 3,977

 

Employment

Employed (2016) 58,353
Employment Change (2011–2016) 9.5%
Labour Force Participation Rate (2016) 57.3%

 

Numbers Employed by Sector (2016)

Total 58,353
Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing 3,977 (6.8%)
Industry & Construction 8,791 (15.1%)
Services 42,890 (73.5%)

Source: CSO Census of Population 2016

Download the 2-page WDC Insights County Donegal’s Labour Market – Census 2016

Agency Assisted Employment (2019)

Permanent Full Time Employment in Agency Assisted Companies 9,505

Source: DBEI, Annual Employment Survey 2019

Local Sustainability

Fertility Rate (2019)* 11.0
Proportion of seats held by women in the 2019 local election** 10.8%
Domestic Building Energy Rating (BER) % Grade B2 and above (2020)*** 4%

* Births per year per 1,000 population. Source: CSO Vital Statistics Yearly Summary

**Source: Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, Local Elections 2019 Results, Transfer of Votes and Statistics

*** Source: CSO Domestic Buildings Energy Ratings

 

Income and Earnings

Avg. Disposable Income per Person (2017)* €15,662
Mean Annual Earnings 2018** €33,776

* Source: CSO County Incomes and Regional GDP

**Source: CSO Ireland, Earnings Analysis using Administrative Data Sources

Enterprise (2018)

Number of Active Enterprises* 10,277
Percentage of Micro-Enterprises (10 or fewer employees)^ 91.6%
Percentage Change in Number of Enterprises (2015-2018)* 8.6%

Source: CSO Business Demography 2018

* Total enterprises includes all ‘business economy’ enterprises (NACE Rev 2 B to N(-642)) plus Health & Social Work, Education, Arts/Entertainment/Recreation and Other Services.

^ Data on enterprise size only includes ‘business economy’ enterprises which account for 79% of Total Enterprises in Donegal.

Labour Catchments in County Donegal (2016)*

Download the 2-page county profile of County Donegal’s Place of Residence and Place of Work, 2011 and 2016

Letterkenny labour catchment 19,717 (2016),    17,886 (2006)
Derry labour catchment 5,056 (2016),    4,581 (2006)
Ballybofey-Stranorlar labour catchment 2,948 (2016),    3,520 (2006)
Donegal labour catchment 3,908 (2016),   3,487 (2006)
Buncrana labour catchment 2,969 (2016),   2,995 (2006)
Killybegs labour catchment 2,299 (2016),   2,653 (2006)
Bunbeg labour catchment 1,493 (2016),   1,939 (2006)
Carndonagh labour catchment 2,352 (2016),   1,737 (2006)

* The labour catchment of a town is that area from which it draws most of its workforce. These figures are the number of workers living in the catchment areas of these towns.