Puerto Rico (Commonwealth of Puerto Rico)

https://www.humantruth.info/puerto_rico.html

By Vexen Crabtree 2013

Puerto Rico Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
Status	Dependency (Commonwealth)
Sovereignty	USA
Capital	San Juan
Land Area	8 870km²₁
Location	North America, The Americas, The Caribbean
Groupings	Small Islands
Population
GNI
ISO3166-1 Codes	PR, PRI, 630₂
Internet Domain	.pr₃
Currency	Dollar (USD)₄
Telephone	+₅

1. Overview

“Populated for centuries by aboriginal peoples, the island was claimed by the Spanish Crown in 1493 following Christopher COLUMBUS' second voyage to the Americas. In 1898, after 400 years of colonial rule that saw the indigenous population nearly exterminated and African slave labor introduced, Puerto Rico was ceded to the US as a result of the Spanish-American War. Puerto Ricans were granted US citizenship in 1917. Popularly-elected governors have served since 1948. In 1952, a constitution was enacted providing for internal self government. In plebiscites held in 1967, 1993, and 1998, voters chose not to alter the existing political status with the US, but the results of a 2012 vote left open the possibility of American statehood.”
CIA's The World Factbook (2013)₆

“Puerto Rico is the fodder of many a Caribbean daydream for good reason: this natural jewel box can satisfy the lethargic beach bum, the sunrise rainforest explorer and the budding big-wave surfer. Golden sand, swashbuckling history and wildly diverse terrain make the sun-washed backyard of the United States a place fittingly hyped as the `Island of Enchantment.´ It´s the Caribbean´s only island where you can catch a wave before breakfast, hike a rainforest after lunch and race to the beat of a high-gloss, cosmopolitan city after dark.
Between blinking casinos and chirping frogs, Puerto Rico is also a land of dynamic contrasts, where the breezy gate of the Caribbean is bedeviled by the hustle of contemporary America. While modern conveniences make it simple for travelers, the condo-lined concrete jungle might seem a bit too close to home. A quick visit for Puerto Rico´s beaches, historic forts and craps tables will quicken a visitor´s pulse, but the island´s singular essence only reveals itself to those who go deeper, exploring the misty crags of the central mountains and crumbling facades of the island´s remote corners.”
"The World" by Lonely Planet (2014)₇

As a territory of the USA I do not have many specific statistics for this territory in its own right.

2. Puerto Rico's Demographics and Migration

#birth_control #demographics #fertility #health #overpopulation #population #yemen

Population:

This country has a fertility rate of 0.90. The fertility rate is, in simple terms, the average amount of children that each woman has. The higher the figure, the quicker the population will grow, although, to calculate the rate you also need to take into account morbidity - the rate at which people die. If people live healthy and long lives and morbidity is low, then, 2.0 approximates to the replacement rate (two new children for each set of parents who die), which would keep the population stable. If all countries had such a fertility rate, population growth would end. The actual replacement rate in most developed countries is around 2.1. The highest fertility rate ever detected in a single year was in Yemen in 1985, at 8.86.₈

Fertility Rate 2.0 is best₉
Pos.		2022₉
1	US Virgin Islands	2.00
2	Ecuador	2.00
3	Nepal	2.01
	...
148	British Virgin Islands	1.02
149	Timor-Leste (E. Timor)	3.05
150	Kazakhstan	3.05
151	Puerto Rico	0.90
152	Tajikistan	3.14
153	Tuvalu	3.14
154	Papua New Guinea	3.17
155	Tonga	3.19
	World Avg	2.47
q=208.

3. Puerto Rico's Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance

#equality #freedom #gender_equality #human_rights #morals #politics #prejudice #puerto_rico #tolerance

Compared to The Americas (2025)₁₀
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₀
1	Canada	14.7
2	Costa Rica	31.8
3	Uruguay	35.5
4	USA	38.6
5	Chile	47.9
6	Puerto Rico	50.8
7	Barbados	51.7
8	Argentina	53.3
9	St Vincent & Grenadines	54.2
10	Dominica	57.3
11	Brazil	60.3
12	Jamaica	64.1
13	Panama	64.4
	The Americas Avg	71.80
q=36.

Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance (2025)₁₀
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₀
1	Sweden	6.1
2	Denmark	8.6
3	Norway	9.0
	...
33	Poland	48.0
34	S. Korea	48.5
35	Latvia	49.4
36	Puerto Rico	50.8
37	Slovakia	51.1
38	Barbados	51.7
39	Greece	52.4
40	San Marino	53.1
	World Avg	86.55
q=199.

The best countries in the world at ensuring human rights, fostering equality and promoting tolerance, are Sweden, Denmark and Norway₁₁. These countries are displaying the best traits that humanity has to offer. The worst countries are Somalia, N. Korea and Afghanistan₁₁.

21 datasets are used to calculate points for each country, including multiple decades of data on supporting press freedom, eliminating modern slavery, supporting personal, civil & economic freedoms, its average Freedom in the World rating, commentary in Human Rights Watch reports, its nominal commitment to Human Rights, speed of uptake of HR treaties, opposing gender inequality, the rate of gender bias (from 7 indicators), the year from which women could participate in democracy, its success in fighting anti-semitic prejudice, LGBT equality and freethought. The regions with the best average results per country are Scandinavia, Baltic States and Europe₁₁, whereas the worst are Africa, The Middle East and Asia₁₁.

For more, see:

" Which are the Best Countries for Human Rights, Equality and Tolerance?" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

Human Rights & Tolerance:

Freedom in the World Lower is better
Pos.		2024 Score
1=	Norway	1.0
1=	Canada	1.0
1=	Cape Verde	1.0
	...
149	Kuwait	5.5
150=	Iraq	5.5
150=	Northern Cyprus	5.5
150=	Puerto Rico	5.5
150=	Oman	5.5
150=	S. Ossetia	5.5
150=	Hong Kong	5.5
150=	Guinea	5.5
	The Americas Avg	2.7
	World Avg	3.7
q=205.

Amnesty International's 2023-23 report on Puerto Rico was quite short: "Killings by police disproportionately affected low-income racially mixed communities. Activists protested environmental degradation. A total of five bills seeking to restrict access to abortion were defeated"₁₂.

4. Puerto Rico's Health

#birth_control #demographics #health #overpopulation #puerto_rico

Compared to The Americas (2025)₁₃
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₃
1	Greenland	34.3
2	Curaço	49.7
3	Aruba	49.9
	...
7	USA	58.5
8=	Antigua & Barbuda	63.2
9	St Martin	66.7
10=	Puerto Rico	70.9
11	Barbados	71.0
12	Turks & Caicos Islands	74.3
13	Cuba	75.7
14	Chile	75.8
15	Uruguay	76.4
	The Americas Avg	92.66
q=44.

Health (2025)₁₃
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₃
1	Monaco	14.3
2	Liechtenstein	30.1
3	Isle of Man	32.1
	...
61	Qatar	70.7
62	Poland	70.8
63=	French Polynesia	70.9
63=	Puerto Rico	70.9
65	Barbados	71.0
66	Albania	71.4
67	Hungary	71.6
68	Slovakia	72.6
	World Avg	96.74
q=212.

The countries with the best overall approach to public health, in terms of both public policy and individual lifestyle choices, are Monaco, Liechtenstein and The Isle of Man₁₄. These countries are worth emulating. And, although often through no fault of the average citizen, the worst countries are S. Sudan, Angola and Nigeria₁₄.

21 datasets are used to calculate points for each country, including multiple decades of data on its average life expectancy, its alcohol consumption rate, its fertility rate, its smoking rate, its suicide rate, its food aid and health contributions and WHO compliance, the prevalence of overweight adults, its adolescent birth rate and its immunizations take-up. The regions with the best average results per country are Scandinavia, Europe and The Balkans₁₄, whereas the worst are Africa, Micronesia and Melanesia₁₄.

For more, see:

"Countries With the Healthiest Cultures and Health Policies" by Vexen Crabtree (2020).

Health:

Puerto Rico is a pretty unhealthy country. And finally, it does worse than average in terms of its fertility rate₉ (the worst in The Americas). The number of overweight adults has increased by 14% over the last 40 years. Puerto Rico's peak fertility rate was 4.8 in 1960.

Fertility Rate 2.0 is best₉
Pos.		2022₉
1	US Virgin Islands	2.00
2	Ecuador	2.00
3	Nepal	2.01
	...
148	British Virgin Islands	1.02
149	Timor-Leste (E. Timor)	3.05
150	Kazakhstan	3.05
151	Puerto Rico	0.90
152	Tajikistan	3.14
153	Tuvalu	3.14
154	Papua New Guinea	3.17
155	Tonga	3.19
	The Americas Avg	1.80
	World Avg	2.47
q=208.

5. Puerto Rico's Responsibility Towards The Environment

#biodiversity #climate_change #deforestation #over-exploitation #puerto_rico #the_environment

Compared to The Americas (2025)₁₅
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₅
1	Uruguay	43.2
2	Puerto Rico	47.1
3	Costa Rica	49.7
4	Chile	56.4
5	Peru	56.7
6	Dominican Rep.	65.0
7	Ecuador	65.6
8	Guatemala	66.1
9	Mexico	66.3
10	El Salvador	67.4
11	Brazil	70.2
12	Colombia	70.9
13	Argentina	78.5
	The Americas Avg	92.66
q=36.

Responsibility Towards The Environment (2025)₁₅
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₅
1	Sri Lanka	34.9
2	Uruguay	43.2
3	Switzerland	45.0
4	Morocco	46.5
5	Puerto Rico	47.1
6	Burundi	47.8
7	Nepal	47.9
8	India	49.5
9	Philippines	49.6
10	Costa Rica	49.7
11	Denmark	50.4
12	Mali	51.0
	World Avg	84.93
q=199.

All countries' current and historical approach towards the environment is gauged via 21 datasets, including multiple decades of data on its forested percent change 2000-2020, its environmental performance, energy to GDP efficiency, its sign-up rate to major international accords on protecting the environment, the rate of rational beliefs on the environment in the population, reducing annual meat consumption per person and its score on the Green Future Index.

The countries that do the best (Sri Lanka, Uruguay and Switzerland) tend to have avoided the excesses of early industrial countries, and have not yet repeated the same mistakes of environmental destruction - at least, not on the same scale. The regions with the best average results per country are Central America, South America and Scandinavia. The worst are Eritrea, The Vatican City and Timor-Leste (E. Timor), and the worst regions Micronesia, Australasia and Melanesia.

For more, see:

" Countries With the Best Environmental Records" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

Puerto Rico comes 5th-best in the world regarding its responsibility towards the environment. This rank is calculated from 2 data sets. Puerto Rico comes in the best 20 in terms of its forested percent change 2000-2020₁₆. It does better than average for energy to GDP efficiency₁₇ (amongst the lowest in The Americas).

Forest Area Change 2000-2020 Higher is better₁₆
Pos.		Total₁₆
1	Guernsey	82.6%
2	Bahrain	75.2%
3	Iceland	64.7%
	...
14	Ireland	22.8%
15	Syria	20.0%
16	Guam	16.7%
17	Puerto Rico	15.5%
18	Iran	15.2%
19	Bulgaria	14.9%
20	Chile	14.6%
21	Cape Verde	14.6%
	The Americas Avg	-2.1%
	World Avg	-0.1%
q=234.

From 2000 to 2010, Puerto Rico restored its forest cover by 15%, from 429 thousand hectares to 491 thousand, although sadly from 2010 to 2020, it only managed +1%.

Energy to GDP Efficiency Lower is better₁₇
Pos.		2022 Avg₁₇
1	Rwanda	0.25
2	Chad	0.26
3	Tanzania	0.31
	...
33	Denmark	0.65
34	Botswana	0.67
35	Hong Kong	0.67
36	Puerto Rico	0.68
37	Angola	0.70
38	Indonesia	0.71
39	Swaziland	0.73
40	Guatemala	0.74
	The Americas Avg	1.42
	World Avg	1.23
q=165.

6. Puerto Rico's Modernity and Learning

#religion #religiosity #research #science #secularisation #the_internet

Modernity and Education:

Research & Development Higher is better
Pos.		2016 % RDP PPP
1	S. Korea	4.29₁₈
2	Israel	4.11₁₈
3	Japan	3.58₁₈
	...
63=	Qatar	0.47₁₉
63=	Cuba	0.47₂₀
65	Macedonia	0.44₂₀
66=	Puerto Rico	0.44₂₀
67	Jordan	0.43₂₁
68	Mozambique	0.42₂₂
69	Thailand	0.39₂₃
70=	Tanzania	0.38₂₂
	The Americas Avg	0.47
	World Avg	0.84
q=126.

Religiosity Lower is better₂₄
Pos.		2018 %₂₄
1	China	3
2	Estonia	6
3	Czechia	7
	...
65	S. Africa	75
66=	Ecuador	76
66=	Costa Rica	76
68	Puerto Rico	77
69=	Malaysia	77
69=	Colombia	77
71	Dominican Rep.	78
72=	Iran	78
	The Americas Avg	65.4
	World Avg	54.3
q=106.

Technology and Information:

Internet Users Higher is better₂₅
Pos.		2016₂₅
1	Iceland	100%
2	Faroe Islands	99%
3	Norway	98%
	...
28	S. Korea	86%
29	Australia	85%
30	Bahamas	85%
31	Puerto Rico	83%
32=	Singapore	83%
32=	Slovakia	83%
34	Spain	82%
35	Austria	81%
	The Americas Avg	56.4%
	World Avg	48.1%
q=201.

IPv6 Uptake Higher is better₂₆
Pos.		2017 Ratio₂₆
1	Belgium	55.4
2	Germany	41.8
3	Switzerland	35.1
	...
63=	Moldova	0.3
64	UAE	0.3
65	Seychelles	0.2
66	Puerto Rico	0.2
67	Indonesia	0.2
68	S. Africa	0.1
69	Jersey	0.1
70=	Sudan	0.1
	The Americas Avg	3.36
	World Avg	3.82
q=176.

7. Religion and Beliefs

#buddhism #christianity #hinduism #islam #judaism #religion #religiosity #secularisation

Religiosity (2018)₂₄
Pos.		Lower is better %₂₄
1	China	3
2	Estonia	6
3	Czechia	7
	...
65	S. Africa	75
66=	Ecuador	76
66=	Costa Rica	76
68	Puerto Rico	77
69=	Malaysia	77
69=	Colombia	77
71	Dominican Rep.	78
72=	Iran	78
72=	Tunisia	78
74	Bangladesh	80
75=	India	80
76	Iraq	82
77=	El Salvador	85
77=	Jordan	85
79	Palestine	86
80=	Uganda	86
	World Avg	54.3
q=106.

Data from the Pew Forum, a professional polling outfit, states that in 2010 the religious makeup of this country was as follows in the table below₂₇:

Christian	96.7%
Muslim	0.1%
Hindu	0.1%
Buddhist	0.3%
Folk Religion	0.8%
Jewish	0.1%
Unaffiliated	1.9%

It appears that when asked "What religion are you" many give pollsters the 'correct' answer despite how they actually feel, and despite what they actually believe. Although 98.1% of the populace say they belong to a religion, only 77% say that they are religious when the question is phrased as "Is religion an important part of your daily life?".

For more on this phenomenon, see:

"Institutionalized Religions Have Their Numbers Inflated by National Polls" by Vexen Crabtree (2009)

The CIA World Factbook has slightly different data, and states simply: Roman Catholic 85%, Protestant and other 15%₂₈.

Links:

A List of All Religions and Belief Systems