Western Visayas (Region VI)

Summary data
Map of the Philippines highlighting Western Visayas
Typeregion
Island groupVisayas
Provinces6
Cities16
Municipalities117
Barangays4,051
Coastal/Landlockedcoastal
Marine waterbodiesSulu Sea, Sibuyan Sea, Visayan Sea, Tañon Strait
Area (2013)207.78 km2 (8022.54 sq mi)
Population (2020)7,954,723
Density (2020)383 / km2 (992 / sq mi)

Western Visayas, officially designated as Region VI, is an administrative region in the Philippines occupying the western section of the Visayas. It covers 6 provinces, namely, Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo, and Negros Occidental, as well as 2 highly urbanized cities. The regional center is the City of Iloilo.

Its population as determined by the 2020 Census was 7,954,723. This represented 38.65% of the overall population of the Visayas island group, or 7.30% of the entire population of the Philippines. Based on these figures, the population density is computed at 383 inhabitants per square kilometer or 992 inhabitants per square mile.

Map

Western Visayas is bordered, clockwise from the North, by the Sibuyan Sea, Jintotolo Channel, Visayan Sea, Tañon Strait, Central Visayas, Sulu Sea, and the Tablas Strait.

details
Map of Western VisayasMap of Western Visayas highlighting its regional center, component provinces and their capitals, and nearby major citiesAklanAntiqueCapizGuimarasIloiloNegros OccidentalBacolod, a highly urbanized cityIloilo City, a highly urbanized city and the regional center

Local government units

Western Visayas has 6 provinces, 117 municipalities, and 16 cities (2 of which are highly urbanized cities administered independently from any province). The total number of barangays in the region is 4,051.

details
Local government units of Western Visayas
NameTypePopulation (2020)Population (2015)Annual Population Growth Rate (2015‑2020)Area (2013), in km2Density (2020), per km2City countMun countBrgy count
Aklanprovince615,475574,8231.45%1,760.30350017327
Antiqueprovince612,974582,0121.10%2,730.67224018590
Bacolodcity (HUC), capital600,783561,8751.42%160.713,73861
Capizprovince804,952761,3841.18%2,594.64310116473
Guimarasprovince187,842174,6131.55%611.873070598
Iloiloprovince2,051,8991,936,4231.23%4,997.644111421,721
Iloilo Citycity (HUC), capital, regional center457,626447,9920.45%78.345,842180
Negros Occidentalprovince2,623,1722,497,2611.04%7,844.123341219601
Western Visayas Total7,954,7237,536,3831.14%20,778.29383161174,051

Demographics

Population by age group

According to the 2015 Census, the age group with the highest population in Western Visayas is 5 to 9, with 786,406 individuals. Conversely, the age group with the lowest population is 80 and over, with 87,558 individuals.

details
Population of Western Visayas by age group (2015 census)
Age groupPopulation (2015)Age group percentage
Under 1145,4251.93%
1 to 4619,0158.21%
5 to 9786,40610.43%
10 to 14767,68410.19%
15 to 19747,7129.92%
20 to 24687,0809.12%
25 to 29596,4097.91%
30 to 34522,1276.93%
35 to 39473,3846.28%
40 to 44423,8095.62%
45 to 49399,3815.30%
50 to 54353,7544.69%
55 to 59301,8864.01%
60 to 64240,5353.19%
65 to 69171,9732.28%
70 to 74121,2281.61%
75 to 7991,0171.21%
80 and over87,5581.16%
Total7,536,383100.00%
  • Youth Dependency Ratio: 48.85
  • Old Age Dependency Ratio: 9.94
  • Total Dependency Ratio: 58.79
  • Median Age: 25.12

Historical population

The population of Western Visayas grew from 1,083,474 in 1903 to 7,954,723 in 2020, an increase of 6,871,249 people over the course of 117 years. The latest census figures in 2020 denote a positive growth rate of 1.14%, or an increase of 418,340 people, from the previous population of 7,536,383 in 2015.

details
Population of Western Visayas (1903‑2020)
Census datePopulationGrowth rate
1,083,474
1,347,2491.39%
2,173,5792.42%
2,530,5171.57%
3,078,3051.74%
3,618,3261.59%
4,146,3902.77%
4,525,6151.77%
5,393,3331.77%
5,776,9381.30%
6,211,0381.57%
6,843,6431.35%
7,102,4381.36%
7,536,3831.14%
7,954,7231.14%

The total number of registered voters or electorate in Western Visayas for the year 2019 was 4,808,839.

Notes

  1. Unless otherwise specified, population count (excluding percentages) and land area figures are derived from the Philippine Statistics Authority.
  2. Data on registered voters is from the Commission on Elections.
  3. Maps utilize OpenStreetMap data available under the Open Data Commons Open Database License.
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