Snapshots - Darwin Region

Darwin

Darwin Region is located in the tropical north-west of the Northern Territory and is the most densely populated region in the NT. It covers an area of 10 262 square kilometres, 7.6% of the NT. The region includes the city of Darwin, the satellite city of Palmerston and the rural statistical districts of Palmerston-East Arm, Litchfield and Finniss.

Darwin City and Palmerston contain 85% of the region’s population, and are the administrative centres of the NT. Darwin is the transport hub of the NT with international shipping and air services arriving and departing from the area.  

The region supports a range of industries including government administration and defence, retail and tourism-related businesses, construction and property and business services. [read more]

Outer Darwin

Darwin Region Balance is located in the tropical north-west of the Northern Territory. It covers 132 012 square kilometres and accounts for 9.8% of the Northern Territory landmass. It includes the world famous Kakadu National Park. Statistical divisions within the region are Daly, South Alligator, West Arnhem and the Tiwi Islands (Bathurst and Melville Islands).

Jabiru was a purpose-built mining town constructed to act as a service centre for the Ranger uranium mine. Much of the region to the east of Kakadu National Park is Indigenous land that contains numerous communities situated in some of the remotest parts of the NT. Bathurst/Melville Island is also home to a large Indigenous population.

The region supports a range of industries including mining, tourism, fishing, agriculture, and government administration and defence. [read more]

Palmerston

Established in the 1980’s to accommodate the growth population of the Darwin area, Palmerston is located 21km south-east of Darwin.  Palmerston has consistently been one of the fastest growing areas in Australia since its establishment and now consists of over 10 major suburbs.

Palmerston is part of the Darwin region and shares its facilities with other areas in the region: the city of Darwin, and the rural areas of Litchfield and Finniss.  The Darwin region covers a total area 10,262 km², 7.6% of the Northern Territory’s land mass.  The region is the most densely populated in the Northern Territory. 

Much of the data in this snapshot is sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) which uses its own geographical boundaries.  In this snapshot three statistical areas are used: the Darwin region, the Palmerston Statistical Subdivision (SSD) includes the Palmerston suburbs, East-Arm and Palmerston (C) Balance (see map below).  The Palmerston SSD covers an area of 95.6 km², while the Palmerston Local Government Area (LGA) covers 52.9 km².  The map below shows the Palmerston Subdivision and highlights the boundary for the Palmerston LGA.  [read more]