There has been record population growth over the past year in half of Quebec’s regions, particularly in Montreal, which “displays by far the strongest growth of all regions.”
According to data from the Institute of Statistics of Quebec published Wednesday, “the population of Montreal increased by 89,600 people over the last year, an increase of 4.3%, compared to 2.3% in the ‘all of Quebec’.
“Never before has a region recorded such a high annual growth rate,” writes the Institute of Statistics of Quebec.
Montreal’s growth alone accounts for 44% of the total growth observed in Quebec during the year.
The Capitale-Nationale region follows in second place in terms of the strength of its demographic growth in 2022-2023 (2.6%). “Until then, she had never climbed so high in the rankings,” we can read.
What explains these record growths? The Quebec Statistics Institute notes that “international migration was the engine of demographic growth in Quebec in 2022-2023”.
“All regions have seen record gains in this area over the past year. This situation is the result of an unprecedented increase in the number of non-permanent residents (mainly temporary foreign workers, asylum seekers and international students). »
Growth rates also reached peaks in the regions of Estrie, Centre-du-Québec, Chaudière-Appalaches, Mauricie, Montérégie, Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean and Bas- Saint Laurent.
“Growth was also significant in Lanaudière, Laval, Outaouais and the Laurentians, without however representing a record. »
Historically low fertility rates
Fertility reached one of the lowest levels in its history in Quebec in 2023, i.e. 1.38 children per woman, just above the low of 1.36 recorded in 1987. Likewise, fertility decreased in all regions. regions and is, in several cases, among the lowest ever observed.
This is particularly the case in Montreal, where the fertility index, which has been the lowest of all regions for several years, has fallen to 1.16 children per woman.
In contrast, Nord-du-Québec maintains much higher fertility than the other regions, at 2.17 children per woman.
“With the exception of Nord-du-Québec, it is the regions of Centre-du-Québec and Chaudière-Appalaches which have the highest fertility, closely followed by Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Lanaudière and Gaspésie–Îles- de-la-Madeleine. In these regions, fertility is between 1.6 and 1.7 children per woman,” specifies the Institute of Statistics of Quebec.
More deaths than births in 10 of 17 regions
In 10 of the 17 regions, deaths outnumbered births. This has been the case for several years in regions where the population is oldest, such as Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Bas-Saint-Laurent and Mauricie, while this phenomenon is very recent in many others, such as Capitale-Nationale, Abitibi-Témiscamingue and Centre-du-Québec.