The average age of the deceased in the Basque Country is 81.7 years

The average age of persons killed in the Basque Country last year was 81.7 years. In the last 10 years the average has increased by 2.4 years, highlighting that it is higher among women (84.9) than among men (78.3).

The Basque Institute of Statistics, Eustat, reported on Tuesday that in 2024 22,392 deaths were recorded in the Basque Autonomous Community, 0.4% more than in 2023.

11,403 women died and 10,989 men died. According to the publication, thelargest number of deaths occurred in July . In total, 1,854 people died, compared with the same month of the previous year, an increase of 15.9%.

One of the most striking data from the survey is that the average age of those who died ten years ago has risen from 79.3 years to 81.7 years in 2024, an increase of 2.1 years over the last decade. 

Men died on average at 78.3 and women at 84.9, while in 2014 the average was 76.2 and 82.6 years respectively.  Thus, in the last 10 years, men have increased the average age of death by 2.1 years and women by 2.3 years.

Álavarecorded the largest decrease , with 3.8% more deaths than in 2023, with a total of 3,026 deaths, followed by Bizkaia with 12,041 deaths (1.3% more) and Gipuzkoa with 7,325 deaths (2.5% less).

Withregard to infant mortality , 26 children under one year of age died in the Basque Country last year, most of them (16) in the first 28 days of birth. Among children under one year of age, more boys (61.5%) died than girls.

Another important fact of the publication is that vegetative growth was negative in the Basque Country, with 9,455 more deaths than births, with 5,620 fewer inhabitants in Bizkaia, 2,903 fewer in Gipuzkoa and 932 fewer in Álava.

With regard to the causes of death,almost one third of the deaths were caused by tumors, namely 6,212 persons, followed by diseases of the circulatory system (25.5 per cent, 5,716 deaths), followed by mental disorders and behaviours and diseases of the respiratory system.

The causes of death were not the same according to sex, as tumors outperformed diseases of the circulatory system among men, while diseases of the circulatory system among women were the main cause of death and tumors the second.