The recently released statistics from the 10th National Population and Housing Census 2022 gives data to help understand the phenomenon of La Altagracia, the easternmost province that is growing in leaps and bounds. It is that La Altagracia is where Punta Cana, the boom tourism town, is located.
Balbiery Rosario for Diario Libre reports that the province’s population growth has by far surpassed the national average of 1.1% over the past 12 years. The La Altagracia average annual increase is 4.18%.
Thousands of capital city dwellers have moved with their families to the Punta Cana area where there are good schools, shopping and an easier lifestyle than traffic congested Santo Domingo. Others have decided to retire in Punta Cana where hundreds of residential areas cater to locals and foreigners, too.
Diario Libre points out that the census data-collecting process in La Altagracia took the longest, with several extensions. The province is also regarded as having the highest omission rate of dwellings nationwide, at 35.5%, compared to the national average of 20.6%.
Diario Libre reports that paradoxically, La Altagracia has the highest number of dwellings per inhabitant among the country’s most populated areas. Yet, it also holds the highest unemployment rate in the Dominican Republic.
With a population of 446,060 inhabitants and 170,732 dwellings, La Altagracia has a higher proportion of dwellings per inhabitant than other densely populated areas. According to a National Statistics Office (ONE) housing occupancy report from November 2023, only 22.29% of these residences are occupied.
La Altagracia is a land of contrasts. There is a wide range of luxury housing and rentals, but the area also is home to hundreds of thousands of Haitian migrants. Many came to build the hotels and stayed.
The census revealed that nearly half of the dwellings in La Altagracia (48.44%) lack piped water inside the home. Most rely on an outdoor faucet, a public tap, a spring or river, a tube well, rainwater, or other sources. Notably, 13.61% of households must purchase water trucks.
In contrast to the national average of 62.7%, only 51.56% of homes in La Altagracia have piped water within the dwelling.
Diario Libre explains that the National Statistics Office plans to release further reports detailing housing characteristics by province, providing a more comprehensive understanding of the development and poverty realities that coexist within La Altagracia.
Diario Libre reports that the slowest-growing provinces are Elías Piña (0.21%), Espaillat (0.32%), Hermanas Mirabal (0.38%), Puerto Plata (0.43%), and San Juan de la Maguana (0.43%).
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Diario Libre
9 July 2024