Proportion of South West population 60-and-over increased by more than 12 per cent since 2001

The proportion of the South West population who are at least 60 years old has nearly doubled since the turn of the century, new Australian Bureau of Statistics figures reveal. According to the latest ABS 2023 population statistics released in late August, the proportion of South West and Waroona residents 60 or above sat at 27.9 per cent in 2023, up from 15.6 per cent in 2001. This compares to the 0-19 and 20-39 categories facing a 5.5 and 5.7 percentage point drop respectively. The 40-59 age category has remained relatively stable, falling by only 1.1 per cent over the 22 years. The City of Bunbury hasn’t experienced quite as an extreme ageing as other regions with 22.3 per cent of residents younger than 20, compared to 28.3 per cent in 2001. There is now 28.1 per cent of the population who are 60 or older, compared to 16.6 in 2001. The Shire of Nannup had the highest proportion of aged residents with a whopping 43.9 per cent of its population 60 years or older, compared to 15.4 per cent in 2001. On the other end of the spectrum, the Shire of Capel is the area with the highest proportion of young people, with 29.4 per cent of its population under 20. The figures also reveal the population of the South West and Waroona has surpassed the 200,000 mark. This is a rise of nearly 70,000 — or more than 50 per cent — compared to 2001 when the population sat at 133,000. Busselton had the biggest jump in its population since 2001, with an additional 20,800 people calling the tourist hot spot home. The coastal town achieved city status in 2012 when its population surpassed 33,000 and now houses almost 44,000 people. Manjimup is the only area to have seen a decrease in population, with its residents dropping below the 10,000 mark to just more than 9400.