Statistics Canada
www.statcan.gc.ca
Home > Census > 2006 Census release topics >
-
2006 Census
-
Previous censuses
-
Future censuses
-
Other links
-
2006 Census quicklinks
-
Other 2006 Census release topics
View the most recent version.
Archived Content
Information identified as archived is provided for reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. It is not subject to the Government of Canada Web Standards and has not been altered or updated since it was archived. Please contact us to request a format other than those available.
Page content follows
Age and sex
Release no. 2: July 17, 2007
- According to the 2006 Census, the 65-and-over population made up a record
13.7% of the total population of Canada in 2006. The proportion of the under-15
population fell to 17.7%, its lowest level ever.
- Canada is still one of the youngest countries in the G8, as only the United
States has a lower proportion of elderly people (12.4% compared with 13.7%).
- The number of people aged 55 to 64, many of whom are workers approaching
retirement, has never been so high in Canada, at close to 3.7 million in 2006.
- Canada's urban areas had a much larger young working-age population
(aged 20 to 44) than rural areas, which were generally older. The differences
are due primarily to internal migration of young adults, who often leave the
rural areas in their late teens or early twenties to pursue their education
or find work in urban areas, and to international immigration, which is heavily
concentrated in large urban centres.