Social Composition and Characteristics
The total population of Indigenous People (IPs) and ethnic tribes is 40,593 or 100% of the municipality’s population. The majority is the Manobos with a total population of 24,221 or 59.67% of the total IP/Ethnic Tribe population in the Municipality of Loreto. The number of IPs increased in 2018 from the record in 20151. They are in all barangays of the municipality, and Poblacion has the majority of IP population with a total of 3,459 individuals or 48.2% of the total barangay population. Nueva Gracia has the second-largest IP population followed by Waloe, Binucayan, Johnson, Kasapa, and San Mariano, respectively.
Total Population
In 2018, Loreto’s total population was 40,593, a decrease of 1, 908 or 4.49% of the population (42,351) in 2015. In 2020, the total population increased by around 8% from 40,593 to 43,880 in the 2020 census. The majority of the total population in 2018 is male with 52.43% while the female population has 47.57% only.
The total number of households continuously increased based on the five years (2005,
2009, 2012, 2015 and 2018) CBMS survey. There are 9,334 households in 2018 with a total of 9,907 families. The average number of family members in a household is 4.
The only urban barangay in the municipality is Poblacion1 with a population of 6,232 or 15.35% of the total population of the municipality based on the 2018 CBMS (census results draft).
In 2018, the majority of the population (58.76% or 23,837) are in the working-age group (15-64 years old) with a male population of 12,687 and a female of 11,150. The ratio of dependency among the working-age population is at 70 in 2018. This means that for every 100 working-age population, there are about 70 dependents (62 are young and 8 are old dependents).
Population Density and Annual Growth
There was a decrease in population density in 2018 compared to the population density in 2015 based on the updated CDP of the municipality. It dropped to 22 persons per square kilometer from 23 persons per square kilometer.