Carolina, Puerto Rico. May 12, 2025. The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute held the forum “From Violence to Dialogue: Understanding and Preventing the Social Crisis”, an event that brought together leading professionals from various disciplines to analyze, from an evidence-based approach, the multiple expressions of violence faced by Puerto Rico.

The program included presentations on armed violence, drug trafficking, intimate partner violence, femicide, education, social inequality and suicide. Each presentation was based on statistical evidence and proposals to strengthen public policies aimed at prevention.

The keynote speech was given by Dr. César A. Rey Hernández, who presented a sociological perspective on the links between inequality, education and violence. In his presentation “Whoever opens a school door closes a prison”, Dr. Rey highlighted that Puerto Rico is facing a profound crisis of school dropout, youth migration, child poverty and the deterioration of the social fabric. He said that in Puerto Rico there are more drug outlets than public schools, reflecting the limited opportunities available to young people and the impact of an expanding informal and illegal economy. Dr. Rey emphasized the urgency of an educational project with a humanistic approach, capable of responding to the ethical and social challenges of the present.

Another of the forum's outstanding topics was suicide prevention, in which demographer Raúl Figueroa Rodríguez, consultant to the Commission for Suicide Prevention, offered an analysis of recent trends, revealing that Puerto Rico reports an annual average of 265 suicides, of which 85% are men, pointing out that the highest rates are recorded in municipalities in central Puerto Rico and in its island municipalities, and that more than 50% of cases are among people over 50 years of age. Figueroa presented the Puerto Rico Socioeconomic Vulnerability Index for Suicide (IVSS-PR), a tool developed to guide community interventions, resource allocation and evidence-based public policy formulation.

During the event, issues such as domestic violence, feminicide, possession of weapons, drug trafficking and the role of public health in preventing violence were also addressed. The program included the participation of experts in epidemiology, criminal justice, demography and officials from state and federal agencies, who shared updated data and multisectoral strategies.

“The purpose of this forum was to provide in-depth and rigorous analysis that serves as a basis for making informed decisions. Our responsibility as an Institute is to ensure that data is at the service of the life, security and dignity of all people in Puerto Rico,” said Dr. Orville M. Disdier Flores, Executive Director of the Institute of Statistics, who added that “this forum reinforces the Institute's commitment to continue generating and disseminating reliable information that allows us to understand the roots of violence, promote social dialogue and strengthen the formulation of evidence-based public policies.”

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute is an autonomous governmental entity responsible for coordinating the Government's statistical production service to ensure that the data collection and statistics systems, on which public policies are based, are complete, reliable, and have quick and universal access.

For more information you can write to preguntas@estadisticas.pr. They can also follow social networks through Facebook (@estadisticas .pr), X (@EstadisticasPR), LinkedIn (Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico) and Instagram (@institutodeestadisticas) accounts.

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No significant change in income in households and families in Puerto Rico

PRESS RELEASE

PUERTO RICO STATE DATA CENTER NETWORK (SDC-PR)

No significant change in income in households and families in Puerto Rico

Based on the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau's Community Survey

San Juan, PR, September 14, 2022 — During the calendar year 2022, the median household income in Puerto Rico increased slightly, about $76, while the median family income fell by $363 compared to what was reported in 2021. This is revealed by the most recent Community Survey data released today by the U.S. Census Bureau, covering the 2022 calendar year. As a local liaison entity with the U.S. Census Bureau, the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics shared several findings from the new 2022 survey data:

1. The estimated median income for households and families showed no significant change, from $24,036 to $24,112 in households, and from $29,907 to $29,544 in families. This represented a change in household income of 0.3% and -1.3% in families.
2. Regarding the migratory indicators for Puerto Rico, the estimates for 2022 showed the following changes compared to the most recent year of available information (2021):
   • Nearly 16,000 people immigrated to other jurisdictions in the United States in net terms, a decrease compared to the previous available year (2021) where the net balance was close to 27,000 people emigrating.
   • Some 26,989 people immigrated from the United States, reflecting a slight decrease in immigrants of -1.4% compared to 2021, where an estimated immigration of 27,380 people was estimated.
   • In the other direction, some 42,990 people migrated from Puerto Rico to other jurisdictions in the United States, showing a decrease of 21.4% compared to the figure for 2021, which was 54,669 people.
3. Compared to the previous year 2021, during 2022, the following selected socioeconomic characteristics of Puerto Rico reflected statistically significant changes:
   • The unemployment rate fell from 13.1% to 9.9%, while the labor force increased by about 3.4%.
   • On the other hand, the percentages related to poverty increased in individuals (40.5% to 41.7%), in those under 18 years of age (54.9% to 57.6%) and in families (36.7% to 38.8%).
   • The percentage of grandparents who are responsible for their grandchild or granddaughter under 18 increased about seven points from 31.8% to 38.8%.
   • Among the total population aged 25 and over, the percentage of people with a higher education level or higher increased (79.6% to 81.7%), as well as those with a baccalaureate level or higher (28.5% to 29.8%).

“The survey information provides us with a recent overview of our society. Several of the indicators contrast with the reduction in the unemployment rate, while incomes (in households and families) remained unchanged. On the other hand, net emigration estimates were reduced for the third consecutive year since the post-hurricane emigration peak of 2018,” said Alberto L. Velázquez-Estrada, Manager of Statistical Projects at the Institute.

The main difference between household income and family income is that household income is considered to be the income of the head of household and any other individual in the household aged 15 years or older, even if not related to the head of the household. Family income, on the other hand, considers the income of all individuals in the household aged 15 years or older than if they are related to the head of the household.

Velázquez also indicated that as the leading entity of the Puerto Rico SDC, the Institute manages the SDC page, which contains the main statistical reports and publications of the U.S. Census Bureau on Puerto Rico, specifically those that are most in demand, such as annual population estimates; the Puerto Rico Community Survey (Puerto Rico Community Survey) and official statistics on Puerto Rico's decennial population and housing censuses, among others.

For more details, data and information about the 2022 Community Survey and previous years, interested parties can access: data.census.gov. The Puerto Rico State Data Center (SDC) page can be accessed at: https://censo.estadisticas.pr/.

The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute is an autonomous governmental entity responsible for coordinating the Government's statistical production service to ensure that the data collection and statistics systems, on which public policies are based, are complete, reliable, and have quick and universal access.

For more information you can visit the website: www.estadisticas.pr.gov on social networks through Facebook (@estadisticas .pr), Twitter (@EstadisticasPR) and LinkedIn (Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico) accounts.

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PRESS RELEASE

Significant advances in the structure of the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics

A Strategic Plan that will allow the Puerto Rico Statistics Institute to be a more effective and effective one, the signing of a collaboration agreement with UNA-USA Puerto Rico to generate the first 13 indicators of the Sustainable Development Goals for Puerto Rico, the updating of the section on studies related to Hurricane Maria, as well as offering support and guidance to those interested in applying for job opportunities in the 2020 Census, are some of the advances made by the Statistics Institute of Puerto Rico during this year 2019.

Aware of the responsibility to coordinate the government's statistical production service to ensure that data is reliable and quickly and universally accessible, during this year the institute also completed and presented important publications such as: the Yearbook of the Puerto Rico Education System: 2015-2016, the World Values Survey for Puerto Rico 2018, the Migrant Profile 2017, the Food Security Report for Puerto Rico 2015, and the Student Health and Safety Profile in Puerto Rico: Years 2015-2017. The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute added to the achievements of 2019 to complete the data for the year 2017 of the Puerto Rico Violent Death Surveillance System, which received an excellent score in all quality criteria and ranked number one among the 42 participating jurisdictions.

“It has been a year of great progress for the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics, because not only are we fulfilling our role of coordinating the production of complete and reliable statistics, but we have also established important alliances with various sectors that allow us to continue advancing our mission, while presenting opportunities to strengthen the research methodologies we carry out. For next year 2020, we will provide continuity with updates to the Puerto Rico Education System Yearbook, the Migrant Profile, and the Student Health and Safety Profile in Puerto Rico, among other products”, said the acting executive director of the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics, Dr. Orville M. Disdier.

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The Puerto Rico Statistics Institute is an autonomous governmental entity tasked with coordinating the government's statistical production service to ensure that the data collection and statistics systems, on which public policies are based, are complete, reliable, and accessible quickly and universally. The most significant achievements of the Puerto Rico Institute of Statistics during this year are available at: Most Significant Achievements of the Puerto Rico Statistics Institute 2019.

To learn more about the Institute of Statistics, you can access the website: www.estadisticas.pr.gov. On social media through Facebook (@estadisticas .pr), Twitter (@EstadisticasPR) and LinkedIn (Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico) accounts.

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Contacts:

Idia M. Martinez, R-28

787-603-3200

imartinez@upfrontpr.net

Lourdes Burgos, R-27

787-562-2932

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