STATEC presents the first results of the 37e population census

The 37th population census in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg took place from 08 November to 05 December 2021 and the first results are now available. 643,941 people were counted as residents. The population of the country has increased by 25.7% (131,588 people) compared to the last census in 2011 when there were 512,353 inhabitants. The proportion of women (49.6% in 2021) is slightly lower than in 2011 (50.2%). The ageing of the population continues: the average age of the population is 39.7 years, 1 year older than in 2011. The number of centenarians has increased from 67 in 2011 to 91 in 2021 (+35.8%).

Table 1 : Demographic indicators for Luxembourg, 2011 vs 2021

Figure 1: Population structure by age and sex in 2011 and 2021

A modern and digital census

The 2021 census was presented with a number of new features, including a completely modernised questionnaire and, for the first time, the possibility of completing the questionnaire digitally, an option chosen by 48% of the people enumerated. For the other half, approximately 110,000 paper questionnaires were received from the 102 municipalities and collected by 1,841 enumerators. Nearly 4 out of 5 people responded to the population census. The participation rate at the national level is around 79% and slightly lower than for the 2011 census (85% participation). For the 2021 census, Luxembourg has moved for the first time from a so-called "traditional" census, a census that collects all the information through questionnaires, to a "combined" census that combines the data collected with the data from the various administrative registers, a formula that has made it possible to considerably reduce the statistical burden for citizens.

Anticipating the needs of a growing population

Population censuses are both the oldest and the most complex statistical operations. The main advantage of censuses is undoubtedly their ability to provide essential socio-economic information such as age structure, sex, nationality, marital status, occupation, educational level and housing conditions, not only at the national level, but also at the level of cantons, municipalities, localities and, for the first time, at the level of European grids which divide the European continent into portions of one square kilometre. The census data facilitate the forecasting of needs for spatial planning, schools, nurseries, hospitals, old people's homes, care homes and housing.

A new interactive and fun online presentation

STATEC has created a new section on its statistical portal specifically dedicated to the interactive, accessible and entertaining presentation of census results: www.statistiques.lu/recensement. Throughout 2023, information on territory, immigration, households, languages, education, the labour market, mobility and housing will be progressively presented in order to provide a complete overview of the country's demographic situation.