The eastern province of Newfoundland and Labrador has announced a $29-million strategy to try to reverse the precipitous drop in its population.
For decades, people have left the province to try to find work elsewhere. The trend spiked in 1992 when the cod fishery was closed due to plummeting stocks and 40,000 people lost their livelihood. Many men left their families to work in the oil industry in the western province of Alberta about 6,000km away.
More people leaving than entering the workforce
Birth rates have declined and the population is also forecast to drop since a big proportion of residents are elderly. More people are currently leaving the workforce than are entering it, noted Premier Paul Davis at a news conference today.
To try to reverse the trend, the government wants to encourage families to stay in the province and it wants to create a good environment for newcomers. Details of the plan to attract and keep people will be unveiled in the coming weeks.
“We want them to stay here and raise their families and be home for good,” Davis told CBC News.
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