Introduction

Demographic characteristics including population size, distribution and age-sex structure are necessary inputs for effective planning for socio-economic development. These characteristics are influenced by the components of population change i.e. fertility, mortality and migration. The dynamics of the components of population change have numerous demographic and socio-economic implications for development.

The objective of this chapter is to analyse the population size and distribution, sex ratio and the population pyramid of the Bodi District. It also discusses the dynamics of the components of population change of the district.

Population Size and Distribution

Bodi District has a total population of 53,314 consisting of 27,111 males and 26,203 females as shown in Table 2.1. The district is predominantly rural with a population of 46,211, representing about 86.7 percent of the total population of the district.. Indeed, the percentage of rural dwellers in the district is far higher than the average for the Western Region (57.6%) as well as the national average (49.1%).

 Age-Sex Structure

The age-sex structure of the Bodi District which is useful for population projections is presented in Table 2.1. Forty-two percent of the total population of the districtis in the 0-14 age group. This reflects a relatively high fertility rate in district. The percentage of the 0-14 years in the district is higher than the proportions for the Western Region (39%) and Ghana (39.9%). The aged (65+ years) in the district accounts for 3.4 of the population.

The sex ratio for the district is 103.5 compared to 100.0 and 95.2 for Western Region and Ghana respectively (GSS, 2013). The sex ratios for the 15-64 age group and 65+ age group are 104.1 and 96.5 respectively.

 Age-Dependency Ratio

Age-dependency ratio is a measure of the dependent population made up of those below 15 years and 65+ years, to the independent population, that is, those in the 15-64 years. The ratio is used to measure the burden borne by those in the working age group. The total dependency ratio for the district is 83.1 compared to 74.8 and 76 for Western Region and Ghana respectively. The ratio is slightly higher for females (83.7) than males (82.5) and in the rural (83.3) than the urban (82.1) areas in the district. Child and old age dependency ratios are 76.7 and 6.2 respectively. The total, child and old age dependency ratios for the district are higher for females than males and in the rural than the urban areas.

Population Pyramid

Population pyramid is a graphical representation of the age-sex composition of a population. Figure 2.1 shows the population pyramid of the Bodi District. The pyramid which has a broad base and tapers off with increasing age depicts a youthful population similar to the population pyramid of the country. As shown in Figure 2.1 there are marked differences in the number of males and females in some of the age groups. For instance the 55-69 and 80+ age groups have more males and females respectively.

Fertility, Mortality and Migration

This section examines the components of population change – fertility, mortality and migration. The interactions of these components determine the population size, population growth and population distribution.

Fertility

Table 2.2 shows the Total Fertility Rate (TFR), General Fertility Rate (GFR) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR) for women age 15-49 years for the Western Region and districts in the region Fertility levels in the Bodi District are higher than the average for the Western Region. For instance, the district has a TFR of 4.1 compared to 3.6 for the Western Region and; a GFR of 122.4 compared to 105.8 for the Western Region.

 

Children ever born and surviving

Further analysis of the fertility dynamics of the female population 12 years and older in the Bodi District is presented in Table 2.3. There are 17,004 females 12 years and older in the district with the highest number (2,549) and the lowest number (384) in the 15-19 and 55-59 age groups respectively. Children ever born to females 12+ years is 47,904 consisting of 24,057 males and 23,847 females. The 60+ and the 12-14 age groups registered the highest and the lowest number of children ever born respectively. About 88 percent of the children ever born in the district survived. The percentage of females (88.59) who survived is slightly higher than males (86.87%) as shown in Table 2.3.

Mortality

Bodi District has Crude Death Rate (CDR) of 6.8 compared to 6.2 for the Western Region (Table 2.4). The number of registered deaths in households in the district (364) is relatively low compared to many other districts in the Western Region.

Figure 2.2 shows reported age specific death rates by sex. Infant mortality and under-five mortality rates are higher among males than females in the Bodi District. However, the death rates among females aged 15-44 years are higher than males. This might be due to maternal mortality in the district. Figure 2.2 further shows that the age specific death rates for males aged 45 years and above are higher than that of females in the same age groups.


Migration

Table 2.5 shows birthplace by duration of residence of migrants in the Bodi District. The district registered 17,010 migrants. Majority of the migrants (about 74.5%) in the district were born outside the Western Region. Out of the migrants who were born in Ghana but outside the Western Region, the highest number (2,859) was born in the Brong-Ahafo Region compared to the lowest number (248) born in the Greater Accra Region.

The highest proportion (30.4%) of migrants has stayed in the district for 1-4 years. The duration of residence varies by the region of birth. For instance, the highest proportion (29.6%) of the migrants who were born in the Brong-Ahafo Region has stayed for 10-19 years while 39.2 percent of those born in the Eastern Region has stayed for 20+ years.