Report: Helsinki immigrant population could double in 20 years

finland-coat-of-armsA new report has suggested that even more people than predicted could immigrate to the Finnish capital in the coming years. The news comes via a new study conducted by the City of Helsinki Urban Facts, published at the weekend by Hufvudstadsbladet (Hbl), a Swedish-language news agency based in Finland. Researchers said that Helsinki’s current immigrant population is likely to more than double within 20 years, despite Statistics Finland forecasting much lower figures late last year.

The number of people living in Helsinki whose native language is not Finnish could grow to nearly 300,000 from the current population of just 130,000, the report claimed.

Roughly 4.8 percent of Finland’s population was comprised of persons of foreign origin at the beginning of 2012, according to a Statistics Finland report published last autumn.

The capital has the highest portion of immigrants in the country at around 11.8 percent, with majority coming from the Middle East and Africa. Ventaa and Espoo also have substantial immigrant populations at 11.2 percent and 10.5 percent, respectively.

Ventaa is the location of choice for Russians, while Espoo is a popular area for Asian immigrants.