Introduction

Population size, composition and age-sex structure are important determinants of a potential labour force and the provision of basic social services such as schools, health centres, housing, etc needed to raise the standards of living of the people. This chapter therefore presents information on the population size and distribution, age-sex structure, migration, fertility and mortality pertaining to the South Dayi District.

Population Size and Distribution

According to the 2010 Population and Housing Census, the total population of the District is 46,661 with males constituting 47.4 percent whilst females form the remaining 52.6 percent. The population of the District constitutes 2.2 percent of the population of the Volta Region. The District is predominantly rural as 61.2 percent of its population resides there compared to urban areas inhabited by 38.8 percent. The urban settlements in the District include Kpeve, Peki and Dzemeni.

Age-Sex Structure

Age and sex are the most basic characteristics of a population. Age-sex structure indicates the number of males and females grouped in five-year age cohort. Table 2.1 reveals that male population is slightly higher than that of the female from age 0-4 years through to 15-19 years and then reverses in favour of females from age 20-24 years onwards. The proportion of population aged 0-14 years constitute 39.0 percent while population aged 15-64 years is 53.6 percent and that of those aged 65 years and older is 7.4 percent (see Table 2.1).

The relatively high youthful population (15-39 years) of 36.2 percent in the District has an in-built momentum for rapid population growth. This has profound implications for development and quality of life for the people.

 Dependency ratio

Dependency ratio is the number of people (child and old age) who depend on every 100 working age population (15-64 years). There is a relatively high dependency ratio of 86.5 in the District compared to the regional average of 81.3. It was also observed that rural communities in the District recorded majority (61.2%) of the population across all age groups. Rural localities have higher dependency ratio (87.4%) than their urban counterparts (85.1). Male dependency ratio is slightly higher (89.6) compared to female (83.7).

Sex ratio

The sex ratio of a population measures the number of males per 100 females. The general expectation is that, there should be more males than females at birth. This means with advancing age sex ratios are expected to decline from one age group to another. This expectation is depicted in Table 2.1 as sex ratios are observed to decline from age group 0-4 to 10-14 but fluctuates through the other age groups. The decrease may be influenced by 16

migration patterns of the population and the differences in death rates among the sexes. Overall however, the District has a sex ratio of 90.2 males to 100 females.

Spatial Analysis
Hierarchy of Settlements:

In terms of population and service delivery function, Peki-Avetile and Dzake are ranked first and second respectively in the whole District. It can be said that the Peki Town Council with a total population of 24,552 (2010 projected figure) has the highest concentration of population and service delivery functions in the district.

Kpeve, now the capital of the District, is assuming a very important role in administrative and commercial functions despite its relatively small population size.

Surface Accessibility to Facilities and Services

Due to the small size of the District and its relatively good road network and condition, physical accessibility to services and facilities (such as health, postal and telecommunication services, agriculture extension, banking, police, marketing centres) by majority of the people is very high.

The District’s strategic location makes it the gateway between the south and north of the region as well as the regional and national capitals, linked by first class trunk roads. However, the condition of the feeder roads is generally poor.
The Volta Lake marketing port of Dzemeni provides accessible water transport route to other parts of the country.