Skip to main content

Western Region Analysis

Land Mass 2,601,501 ha
% of Ireland 37.1%
Population Density (2016) 31.85 persons per sq km
Western Region Analysis

Human Resource

Population (2016) 828,697
Population Change (2011-2016) 1.0%

Land Mass 2,601,501 ha
% of Ireland 37.1%
Population Density (2016) 31.85 persons per sq km

Top 12 Centres of Population in the Western Region (2016)

Galway City and Suburbs 79,934
Ennis, Co. Clare 25,276
Letterkenny, Co. Donegal 19,274
Sligo, Co. Sligo 19,199
Castlebar, Co. Mayo 12,068
Ballina, Co. Mayo 10,171
Shannon, Co. Clare 9,729
Tuam, Co. Galway 8,767
Buncrana, Co. Donegal 6,785
Ballinasloe, Co. Galway 6,662
Westport, Co. Mayo 6,198
Roscommon, Co. Roscommon 5,876

Source: CSO Census of Population 2016

 

Highest level of education completed by persons whose education has ceased (%)

No Formal/Primary (15.7%)
Secondary (45.1%)
Third Level (39.2%)

Source: CSO Census of Population 2016

Natural Resources

Average Farm Size  (2010) 26.33 ha
Farming, Fishing & Forestry workers (2016)  22,733

Employment

Employed (2016) 333,919
Employment Change (2011-2016) 7.5%
Labour Force Participation Rate (2016) 59.3%

Numbers Employed by Sector (2016)

Total 333,919
Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing 22,733 (6.8%)
Industry & Construction 63,920 (19.1%)
Services 232,651 (69.7%)

Source: CSO Census of Population 2016

Download the 2-page WDC Insights Census 2016: What do people in the Western Region work at?

Agency Assisted Employment (2019)

Permanent Full Time Employment in Agency Assisted Companies 66,457

Source: DBEI, Annual Employment Survey 2019

Local Sustainability

Fertility Rate (2019)* 11.6
Proportion of seats held by women in the 2019 local election** 15.0%
Domestic Building Energy Rating (BER) % Grade B2 and above (2020)*** 5%

* Births per year per 1,000 population.  Source: CSO Vital Statistics Yearly Summary (Western Region own calculation)

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

*** Source: CSO Domestic Buildings Energy Ratings (Western Region own calculation)

Income and Earnings

Average Disposable Income per Person (2017) €17,856
Mean Annual Earnings 2018**  €39,060

* Source: CSO County Incomes and Regional GDP  (Western Region own calculations)

**Source: CSO Ireland, Earnings Analysis using Administrative Data Sources (Western Region own calculations)

Enterprise (2018)

Number of Active Enterprises* 57,222
Percentage of Micro-Enterprises (10 or fewer employees)^ 92.6%
Percentage Change in Number of Enterprises (2015-2018) 6.4%

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 the Western Region

Labour Catchments in the Western Region (2016)

Download the 2-page WDC Insights Census 2016: Where do People in the Western Region Work?

Galway city labour catchment 70,170 (2016),  64,455 (2006)
Ennis labour catchment 21,409 (2016),  21,333 (2006)
Sligo borough labour catchment 21,824 (2016),  20,321 (2006)
Letterkenny labour catchment 19,717 (2016),  17,886 (2006)
Castlebar labour catchment 13,931 (2016),  13,757 (2006)
Roscommon labour catchment 7,235 (2016),  7,306 (2006)
Carrick-on-Shannon labour catchment 7,785 (2016),  6,632 (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.