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Portugal measures a
total of 91 946,7 km2 and is divided into two parts: continental
Portugal (97% of the total land area) and the archipelagos of
Madeira and the Azores. In 1998 the GDP (measured in Purchasing
Power Standards (PPS)) per head of the population reached 73.6%
of the Community average (UE 15). In 2003 the GDP per head is
74,7% of the Community average in the enlarged Europe (UE 25
).
Continental Portugal is divided into five NUTS II regions (North,
Centre, Lisboa e Vale do Tejo, Alentejo and Algarve). The isles
of Azores and Madeira, are autonomous regions and have their
own organs of government: a regional assembly and government.
The population is of the order of 10,5million, 95% of whom live
in continental Portugal. The population density is 114 inhabitants/km2,
but there are major differences between regions: the figures
for Alentejo and Algarve, 24,4 and 81,2 inhabitants/km2 respectively,
are the lowest in Portugal.
The age structure is similar to that of the European Union as
whole, with young people (less than 14 years old) and old people
(more than 65 years old) accounting for 15,7% and 16,8% of the
total population respectively. Here too, however, there are
major differences between regions: the population of the Autonomous
Regions of the Azores and Madeira and the North Region is on
average younger than that of the other regions, while in the
Centre, Alentejo and Algarve, the percentage of old people is
above the average for Portugal and for the UE 25.
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