2022 was a record year for Canada as it registered the highest annual population growth rate of 2.7 percent since 1957, where the jump seen was 3.3%.
In 1957, the population figure jumped mainly on account of the higher number of births during the postwar period of baby boomers accompanied by flocks of refugee immigration following the Hungarian Revolution of 1956.
However, the recent uptick in population was mainly due to international migration, which accounted for 95.9% of the total 1,050,110 people added between January 1, 2022, to January 1, 2023.
A press release by Statistics Canada says this is the first time in the country’s history that its population expanded by over a million people in a year period.
The total population of Canada as of January 1, 2023, is 39,566,248 million, 2.7% higher than a year prior.
While other aging nations like Japan are experiencing a population crisis, Canada managed to lure the human resource. It registered the highest population growth when compared with G7 nations and OECD countries, also falling in the ranks of the top 20 globally.
“If the country’s population were to continue growing at the same rate, it would double in around 26 years, said Statistics Canada.
Immigrants Statistics:
The number of immigrants arriving in Canada totaled 437,180 in 2022, and increased immigration has a link with the policy of the Government of Canada to ease labor shortages in the main sectors of the economy, per Statistics Canada.
“High job vacancies and labor shortages are occurring in a context where population aging has accelerated in Canada, and the unemployment rate remains near record low,” added the agency.
In late 2022, the Canadian government announced welcoming 1.5 million immigrants by 2025 with the aim to fill in lacunas in the economy created by an aging population.
However, Statistics Canada data sheds light on potential challenges the country could face if the 2022 trend continues.
“A rise in the number of permanent and temporary immigrants could also represent additional challenges for some regions of the country related to housing, infrastructure and transportation, and service delivery to the population,” said the agency.