More People Leaving Sweden Than Coming In Govt

The demographic structure of the Swedish population is already in a state of radical transformation. Sweden has experienced a situation where more people are moving out of a region than moving in for the first time in the last 50 years. This is different from what Sweden is used to. For many years now, Sweden has been a country that a number of people from other countries migrate to. But things are changing. It was released by the government on Thursday. This comes as a shock to many because Sweden has always been welcoming of settlers.

Why Is This Happening?

There are some reasons this is taking place. First and foremost, Sweden has a new government that wants fewer immigrants. They are making it much harder for people to move there. They have changed some rules to make it harder for people to come and stay. Also, some of those who already live in Sweden are deciding to leave the country. Maybe they are going back home, maybe to other places. The government believes this would help solve some problems in Sweden. They believe that with fewer new people coming in, everybody will be able to get along and feel part of Swedish society.

Numbers Tell the Story

The government came out with some numbers that indicated what was happening. For instance, between January and May of this year, 5,700 more people have left Sweden than arrived. That is a lot of people! Not only that but 15 percent fewer moved to Sweden than compared to last year. That means that for every 100 people that came last year, this year it was only 85. At the same time, 60% more moved out of Sweden compared with the previous year. So, if 100 moved out last year, this year 160 moved out. The other major change is that very few are asking to stay in Sweden as refugees. As few as since 1997, actually – that is, more than 25 years ago!

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Government’s View

Maria Malmer Stenergard, an immigrant working in the government, said she was pleased with this change. Well, she said it can maybe be a way of solving some of Sweden’s problems. As she said, now individuals who reside in Sweden require a sense of belonging, and being accepted as members of society. New people are not arriving in Sweden as before — it is easier to help all those who are already there, the government says. They think that this will help the immigrants to be able to learn the Swedish language, get employment, and integrate into the Swedish community. This the government terms as ‘sustainable immigration’, which implies that it is a better solution in the long run in terms of how the country should address immigration.

Sweden’s History of Immigration

Sweden has been an asylum country for decades. This can be dated back to the 1990s which is more than three decades ago. Some of these immigrants hailed from war zones or, in any case, from countries experiencing instability. For instance, many are from Yugoslavia; a country that has since been dissolved into several small countries. Others were from Syria, Afghanistan, Somalia, Iran and Iraq. These countries have had wars or other big issues that have made the people look for other means of surviving. Sweden was a haven where all these people could start a new life. Well, it seems that this trend has been finally reversed. The new numbers indicate that the number of new people being received in Sweden is not as high as before.