While the population continues to grow in France and the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, the former Limousin continues to lose thousands of inhabitants each year. The demographic decline is particularly pronounced in Creuse and in the north of Haute-Vienne.
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INSEE has just published the latest demographic data in France as of January 1, 2022 and the former Limousin is the territory of Nouvelle-Aquitaine which loses the most inhabitants between 2016 and 2022, according to this study.
As of January 1, 2022, the former Limousin officially has 728,087 inhabitants, or 7,928 fewer in six years, the equivalent of a commune like Malemort.
This demographic decline is contrary to the increase in the population recorded throughout the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, which has 6,113,384 people, up 0.5% per year, or 30,000 more inhabitants each year, the equivalent of a city like Périgueux.
At this rate, the former Limousin could fall below the 700,000 inhabitants mark within fifteen to twenty years.
Creuse is the department which suffers the most, with, alone, 3,973 fewer inhabitants (half the population lost across all three departments), and a total population of 115,529 inhabitants.
In Creuse, the main municipalities are all losing population, starting with Guéret which falls below 13,000 inhabitants (12,814 with a drop of 461 inhabitants). The commune of La Souterraine, although favored by its strategic road location, saw its population fall below 5,000 people (4,928 inhabitants, down by 368 people).
The commune of Aubusson is even harder hit by this demographic decline and is now just above 3,000 inhabitants (3,036 people recorded, down by 364 inhabitants in six years). The commune of Bourganeuf (2,408 inhabitants) has also lost 10% of its population in six years.
On the other hand, the commune of Sainte-Feyre, which benefits from its functional rehabilitation center and its proximity to Guéret, sees its population increase by 59 inhabitants and totals 2,531 residents.
The situation in Haute-Vienne is more contrasted and the department has 372,438 inhabitants, down by 2,540 between 2016 and 2022.
The population of the Limoges Métropole agglomeration is almost stable, the inhabitants lost by the central city find themselves gained by the peripheral municipalities.
But symbolically, the city of Limoges falls below the 130,000 inhabitants mark and totals, as of January 1, 2022, 129,754 people (2,906 fewer residents).
Limoges is the only city in New Aquitaine with more than 50,000 inhabitants to lose population, according to INSEE.
Its neighbor Couzeix crosses the symbolic threshold of “ten thousand” (10,011 inhabitants) thanks to a spectacular gain of 853 inhabitants in six years, benefiting from numerous construction sites for individual or collective housing.
The increase in population is also very noticeable in the municipalities on the outskirts such as Peyrilhac, Saint-Gence, Le Vigen, Isle or Rilhac-Rancon.
On the other hand, the north of Haute-Vienne is suffering from a significant demographic decline, like the town of Bellac which has lost 400 inhabitants in six years and now has a total of 3,563 residents.
Also read: “A dynamic and lively city”: victim of its success, this town is seeking to slow down its growth
The Corrèze department is experiencing a situation of quasi-stability of its population.
With 240,120 inhabitants on January 1, 2022, it only lost 1,500 people, the arrival of new inhabitants almost managing to compensate for the deaths.
This stability is more clearly noticeable in the town of Brive and its conurbation.
Brive only loses 235 inhabitants between 2016 and 2022, but its neighbor Saint-Pantaléon-de-Larche passes the symbolic bar of 5,000 inhabitants (5,006 people, an increase of 219 inhabitants in six years).
On the other hand, the demographic decline has worsened for Tulle and Ussel. The Corrèze prefecture loses 851 inhabitants and only has 13,602 residents.
The phenomenon is identical to Ussel which lost 608 inhabitants and now totals 9,174 residents.
