CENSUS SHOWS THE CHANGING FACE(S) OF CAYMAN

A picture of the changing face - and faces - of Cayman has emerged from the 2021 census as the trend continues to show a diverse, cosmopolitan society of people from all over the world who have joined the indigenous population and made the jurisdiction their home.

71,432 residents of the Cayman Islands were counted in the 2021 Census which was taken over the Census Week period last October, the result showing that in the past 10 years, the population had grown by almost 30 per cent - a 29.2 per cent increase since the last census in 2010.

The population as counted last October is made up of 38,047 Caymanians and 33,058 non-Caymanians with the non-Caymanian total including 6,378 Permanent Resident(PR) holders.

There were 7,068 more Caymanians, or 22.8 per cent, compared to 9,001 more non-Caymanians or an increase of 37.4 per cent. In other words, there were 115 Caymanians in the population for every 100 Non-Caymanians, according to the census report.

The relative share of Caymanians in the 2021 population is 53.5 per cent compared to 56.3 per cent in 2010 and a significant shifty since 1979 when it was at 80.7 per cent.

“On the other hand,” the report notes, “the non-Caymanian relative share of the population in 2021 recovered to 46.5 per cent, slighter higher than in 2010 but lower than in 1999.”

The top five countries and territories of birth for residents were the Cayman Islands (35.4%), Jamaica (24.8%), Philippines (5.5%), United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (5.3%), and the United States of America (5.2%).

The Census 2021 report also shows that the population increase in the past decade and its implied average annual growth rate of 2.4%) “were the lowest since the 1979 Census, when the implied growth was 5.8 per cent,” according to the Cayman Islands Economics and Statistics Office which coordinated the census.

One of the main findings in the report highlights the continuing trend in Cayman’s cosmopolitan population comprised of residents from 162 countries and territories around the world based on place of birth.

When residents' place of birth is categorised by geographical regions, the Caribbean region dominated, with 64.0 per cent of residents, followed by Asia (8.9%) and North America (8.6%).

Among Caymanians, the region of birth was predominantly the Caribbean region (79.7%), followed by North America (7.3%) and Central America (5.6%). In contrast, the Caribbean region (45.9%), Asia (17.7%) and Europe (11.6%) were the top three regions of birth for Non-Caymanians.

According to the report, “Akin to the numerous places of birth, residents of the Cayman Islands were citizens of 147 countries. Of the 36,808 Caymanians, 4,649 were also citizens of the United Kingdom, followed by Jamaica with 4,285, the United States of America with 2,655, Canada with 1,262 and Honduras with 1,186 in the top five countries and territories.”

In other words, it explained, based on the results of the 2021 Census, the Cayman Islands citizenry was comprised of persons from 90 different countries.

Except for the Sister Islands, all districts recorded double-digit growth rates in the 2021 Census relative to the 2010 Census.

In the districts of Bodden Town, West Bay, and East End, population growth over the past ten years was higher than the national average of 29.2 per cent. Compared to previous censuses, George Town, Bodden Town, North Side and the Sister Islands' growth was slower than in 2010.

In contrast, the growth rate in East End increased sharply, with West Bay marginally higher.

Relative to 2010, the 2021 Census growth rates of George Town was 24.3 per cent, West Bay 36.6 per cent, Bodden Town 40.8 per cent, North Side 28.6 per cent, East End 31.2 per cent. The Sister Islands declined by 1.7 per cent.

The overall increase in non-Caymanians relative to Caymanians in 2021 was also reflected in the population growth in the districts. This shows that in George Town, the increase in non-Caymanians numbered at 4,627, more than doubled the increase in Caymanians at 2,205.

All districts had a higher percentage increase in non-Caymanians than Caymanians. Among the districts, East End, North Side and West Bay recorded the highest percentage increase in non-Caymanians.

The number of households in the Cayman Islands increased by 30.5 per cent, from 22,760 in the 2021 Census to 29,699 in the 2021 Census. The average household size declined marginally from 2.42 persons in the 2010 Census to 2.39 persons in 2021.

The population is still almost evenly split between men and women with slightly more males accounting for 50.6% than females at 49.3%.

The census report said this is reflected across all districts, except Bodden Town and the Sister Islands, where the proportion of females was slightly higher than males.