UAE population crosses 8 million

The population of the UAE has reached 8.19 million and is continuing to grow despite the global financial crisis, The National reported Sunday, citing a comprehensive report by the National Bureau of Statistics, unveiled yesterday.

The UAE population stood at 8.07 million in 2008 and had risen by 125,000 last year, the newspaper said,  adding that the figure is higher than other previous official figures and projections.

The Report on Economic and Social Dimension 2009 also showed that the majority of the population, 81.9%, is in the 15 to 59 age group, while just 1.3% are aged 60 or above, it said.

The report revealed that last year’s falling oil price and higher government spending to tackle the fallout from the global economic crisis had “completely wiped out” the government surplus in 2009.

79% of the expatriate population is 'economically active,' or in work, compared with 45% of Emiratis, the report said, adding that nearly 20% of the population were voluntarily unemployed while 2.3% were looking for jobs.