The Osrednjeslovenska statistical region, in terms of area the second largest, had over a quarter of Slovenia’s population (26.6%) in 2023. With a population density of 242 inhabitants per square kilometre, it was the most densely populated.
On average people in this region were the youngest (42.5 years). Osrednjeslovenska was the region with the lowest natural decrease, i.e. –0.5 per 1,000 population. The region had the highest share of women in the population (50.5%). The age structure of the population in the region was favourable. The share of the population aged 65 or more was the lowest (19.5%), while the share of the population aged 0–14 was the second highest (15.6%), tied with the Gorenjska region. In Osrednjeslovenska 49.1% of children were born to married mothers, which was one of the highest shares among regions. The mean age of mothers at birth of children was 31.7 years and of first-time mothers 30.5 years. The mean age at death in this region was the second highest, at 79.6 years, surpassed only by the Goriška region, where it was higher by half a year. The educational structure of the population also stood out among regions. The share of the population aged 25–64 with tertiary education was the highest (41.5%) and the share of the population with basic education or less was the lowest (9.9%). This region also had the highest share of children aged 1–5 included in kindergartens (84.0%). The share of foreign citizens among the population was the second highest at 10.8%, following the Obalno-kraška region with 14.9%.
According to the labour migration index (133), this region was very labour-oriented; the number of persons in employment working in the region was much higher than the number of persons in employment living in the region. In terms of employment, this region was also very important for residents of other regions. The employment rate was 70.6%, above the national average of 69.3%, and the LFS unemployment rate 3.6%, just below the national average of 3.7%. Average monthly net earnings of persons employed in the region were the highest in the country (EUR 1,567), 8% higher than the national average.
The gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in this region amounted to EUR 44,567; it was the highest among all regions and 48% above the national average. Osrednjeslovenska was also the only region where GDP per capita exceeded the national average. The region generated 39.3% of Slovenia’s gross value added (GVA), with the largest share (45.8%) coming from service activities. Disposable income per capita in the region amounted to EUR 17,372 and exceeded the national average of EUR 16,615 by 4.6%. The region was first in terms of the number of enterprises in the country. It had a third of all enterprises or around 78,200.
People living in Osrednjeslovenska assessed general satisfaction with their life with the third highest average score, i.e. 7.8 out of 10. The at-risk-of-poverty rate was the lowest in this region and the Gorenjska region, standing at 9.6% in each. The risk of social exclusion rate was the second lowest, at 10.6%. The share of households where all household members can afford a one-week annual holiday away from home was the highest at the regional level (88%). In this region, the number of passenger cars per 1,000 population was the second lowest at 555. People here drove the newest cars on average (10.3 years).