Tibet population doubled by 2010 end: China

The population of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region has been growing at a rate of 1.1 per cent per year from 2005 to 2010, much higher than the national average, a spokesman of Tibet's family planning commission said.

Tibet is China's least-populated province-level region. The population was only 1.23 million in 1959, official Xinhua reported. However, the official did not provide figures of ethnic Tibetans as well as those from the mainland China settled in the province to work in host of ongoing projects.

Also, Tibet's average life expectancy rose from 35.5 years to 67 years over the past five decades, mainly due to rising health care standards and an improving social security system, the spokesman said.