Between July 24 and August 19, 2023, 11,151 people[3] were counted in Wallis and Futuna (8,088 in Wallis and 3,063 in Futuna). Since 2003, these French Pacific islands have been facing a decrease in their population due to a strong emigration of young people of university or working age. This decrease was particularly marked between 2003 and 2013 (-2.0% on average per year), then it eased between 2013 and 2023 (-0.9% per year). The majority of the inhabitants (72.5%) live in Wallis, which has the highest population density of the two inhabited islands (104 inhabitants per km² compared to only 48 inhabitants per km² in Futuna). Over the last twenty years, the population has fallen by 25.4%, but the population decline has been half as pronounced in Wallis as in Futuna (respectively -19.7% versus -37.1%).
The evolution of a population depends on the natural balance and the migratory balance. In Wallis and Futuna, natural increase has been divided by five in past twenty years. As the balance of births over deaths is very slightly in surplus, the migratory deficit explains the decline in the population. Between the censuses of 2018 and 2023, natural increase was only 42 people on average per year. It contributed 0.4% to the average annual population increase, compared to 0.7% between 2013 and 2018 (80 people per year) and 1.5% over the period 1996-2003 (218 people per year). However, the migratory balance has been in deficit since 1969 (except during the period from 1976 to 1983). It has contributed to the decline in population over the last five years (-1.1% per year on average), but less significantly than before (-3.2% per year on average between 2003 and 2008).
