The state of Alagoas is located in the Northeast region of Brazil. Its territorial extension is 27,779.343 square kilometers, divided into 102 municipalities. According to the population count carried out in 2010 by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), the population of Alagoas totals 3,120,494 inhabitants. It has a demographic growth of 1% per year and the population density is 112.3 inhabitants per square kilometer.
According to sex, the population is divided as follows: women (51.55%) and men (48.45%). Most of the inhabitants live in urban areas (73.6%) and the rural population corresponds to 26.4%. With regard to life expectancy in Alagoas, it is 66 years.
In the state there are several indigenous tribes, among the main ones are: Aconã, Carapotós, Cariris-xocós, Caruazus, Catokinn, Jeripancó, Kalancó, Tingui-botós and Uassu-cocal. There are also remnants of Quilombo communities, such as Muquém.
Maceió, capital of Alagoas, is the most populous city in the state, with 932,748 inhabitants. Other municipalities with high population concentration are: Arapiraca (214,006), Palmeira dos Índios (70,368), Rio Largo (68,481), União dos Palmares (62,358), Penedo (60,378), Coruripe (52,130).
The absence of effective public policies causes Alagoas to present several socioeconomic problems. The state has the lowest Human Development Index (HDI) in Brazil, with an average of 0.677. The infant mortality rate is the highest in the country, and for every thousand children born alive, 46.4 die before reaching one year of age, more than double the national average, which is 22.
The illiteracy rate is also the highest in the country: illiteracy, 24.6%; functional illiteracy, 36.5%. The lack of basic sanitation is another aggravating factor – less than 20% of homes have a sewage system.
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By Wagner de Cerqueira and Francisco
Graduated in Geography
Brazil School Team
alagoas - Northeast region - geography of Brazil - Brazil School
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
FRANCISCO, Wagner de Cerqueira e. "The population of Alagoas"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/brasil/a-populacao-alagoas.htm. Accessed on June 28, 2021.
