Statistics Canada released their population data for the 2021 census and here is what it is revealing about the northeast.
On Feb 9, Statistics Canada released its data on population changes from 2021 and compared it with its previous census data from 2016.
The areas of Tisdale and Melfort have seen a decrease in population with an 8.2 and one per cent decrease respectively.
Julien Bérard-Chagnon, Senior Analyst at Centre for Demography, said a decrease in population is expected in rural areas.
“These dynamics are not new, around the country, the population of urban areas is increasing at a faster pace than that of rural areas.”
Bérard-Chagnon explains this is due to two main factors. Immigration is the first factor, with immigrants more likely to settle in the urban environment.
Second, young adults tend to move to urban areas to attend post-secondary institutions and find work in their desired field.
This information is the first of seven releases of the 2021 census data. In September, data on indigenous populations will be released and ethnocultural statistics are set to be released on Oct 26.
Some areas in the northeast have grown since the last census including Nipawin with a 3.3 per cent increase and Humboldt seeing a 2.3 per cent increase.
With residency increasing in Humboldt, Mayor Michael Behiel explained the census data shows what the people in the area already know.
“I think that it’s a continuing reflection that Humboldt is a very desirable place to live. It’s just continuing to grow as a result of people recognizing that more and more.”
Behiel added Humboldt is going to continue to focus on infrastructure, schools, parks, playgrounds, and access to businesses and services in the community.
As Humboldt continues to be a hub for health care, education and recreation, the city is looking forward to seeing the population continue to grow in the coming years.
“Congratulations to everybody in Humboldt. You should be very proud of seeing our city grow and that means that we have great pride in our city and we’re going to continue to have pride in our city as a whole.”
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Rachel.May@pattisonmedia.com
On Twitter: @RachelMayFM
