Six municipalities with at least 60% of their population living in poverty
They are located in the center and south-west according to the Map Series of the Puerto Rico Census Data Network
San Juan, PR, November 17, 2020 — The percentage of people living in poverty shows that six municipalities have between 60% and 64% of their population with this characteristic. The geographical distribution shows that they are located in the center and southwest of Puerto Rico, these being Maricao, Guánica, Adjuntas, Lajas, Jayuya and Comerío. La Selected Indicator Map Series includes the information collected during the period 2014-2018 through the Community Survey carried out by U.S. Census Bureau. This series includes ten indicators on demographic, social and economic topics at the level of municipalities and neighborhoods in Puerto Rico.
In addition, with information from the same period (2014-2018), the Socio-Demographic Profiles of Puerto Rico's Electoral Districts Which are divided volume IandII, with the 8 Senate Districts and with the 40 Representative Districts respectively. These provide a detailed photograph of each electoral district with essential information to know the particularities of the population that resides in each of them.
Both new products (Map and Profile Series) are part of the publications of the Puerto Rico Census Data Network (SDC-PR by its acronym in English). All of them can be accessed free of charge on the SDC-PRcenso.estadisticas.pr. As a local liaison entity with the U.S. Census Bureau, the Institute of Statistics shares several findings from the Selected Indicator Map Series:
Among the 10 municipalities with the highest percentage of children under 18, eight of them were in the southern and central region of Puerto Rico. On the other hand, the 4 municipalities with the lowest percentage of minors were Guaynabo, and to the west Rincón, Mayagüez and Hormigueros.
The highest percentages of the 18-64 year old population were in 7 municipalities, these being Toa Alta, Aguada, Morovis, and in the central-eastern area Cidra, Gurabo, Juncos and San Lorenzo. On the other hand, the municipalities with the lowest percentages of the population aged 18-64 are located mainly in the southwest (Hormigueros, San Germán, Sabana Grande, Lajas and Guánica) and to the east (Fajardo, Ceiba and Culebra).
The municipalities with the highest percentage of elderly people (65+) are shown to be in the western area of Hormigueros, San Germán, Lajas and Rincón.
Municipalities with the highest percentages (80%-84%) of people with a higher education level or higher are geographically concentrated in the metropolitan area, in addition to Santa Isabel on the south coast. On the other hand, the two municipalities with the lowest percentage of education attained are located in the midwest (Maricao and Las Marías).
As for the population with disabilities (reported on their own account), 6 of the 10 municipalities with the highest percentages (Cayey, Cidra, Comerío, Aguas Buenas, Naranjito and Orocovis) are geographically concentrated in the central area, and the other 4 municipalities are located in the south-west (Guánica, Sabana Grande, Hormigueros and Yauco). On the other hand, a concentration of municipalities in the south-east region reflected hundreds of children with disabilities (< 15%), with 9 of the 13 municipalities in this category including the island municipalities of Vieques and Culebra.
In the metropolitan region, east and south, most of the municipalities with the highest percentage (50%-74%) of households with access to broadband internet are clustered. In a situation of lower access, some 4 municipalities in the western region showed that they had less than 35% of their homes with internet access, these being Lajas, Cabo Rojo, Maricao and Las Marías.
In percentage terms, the population in 37 municipalities around Puerto Rico was shown to have half of its population or more (50% +) living in poverty. Municipalities with the lowest percentage of people in poverty are located in the metropolitan area with the exception of the municipalities of San Juan and Cataño.
Regarding family income across municipalities, this indicates that about 7 municipalities (Gurabo, Trujillo Alto, Dorado, Carolina, Toa Alta, Culebra and Bayamón) showed a median of between $30,000 and $39,000 in family income. The municipality with the highest median household income was Guaynabo ($44,000).
The highest percentage of people in the workforce (50%-57%) are mostly municipalities in the metropolitan area and the Northeast, where 11 of the 13 municipalities with this characteristic are located, Culebra and Juana Diaz the only ones outside these regions.
“The series of maps provides a geographical perspective on features of interest within Puerto Rico. The behavior of geographical patterns could support government and community management, analysis for decision-making, and stimulate research. In the same sense, the profiles of the electoral districts serve as basic metrics for current and future public policy that affects the residents of these regions.” said Alberto L. Velázquez-Estrada, Manager of Statistical Projects at the Institute.
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. In addition, as the leading entity of the SDC in Puerto Rico, the Institute manages the SDC portal, 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 10-year population and housing censuses, among others. The Puerto Rico SDC portal can be accessed through: https://censo.estadisticas.pr/.
For more information you can visit our website: www.estadisticas.pr.gov. In addition, you can follow us on social networks through Facebook (@estadisticas .pr), Twitter (@EstadisticasPR) and LinkedIn (Institute of Statistics of Puerto Rico) accounts.
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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