Paris, Mar. 31, (dpa/GNA) - Migrants made up a tenth of the population of France as of 2021, the national statistics authority INSEE said on Thursday.
Over a third of France’s 7 million migrants, 36%, had acquired French nationality since their arrival in the country, the authority said.
Nearly half of the country’s migrants, 47.5%, were born in Africa, while 33.1% were born in Europe and 13.6% in Asia, the authority said.
The main countries of origin were Algeria (12.7%), Morocco (12%), Portugal (8.6%), Tunisia (4.5%), Italy (4.1%), Turkey (3.6%) and Spain (3.5%).
On average, one French person emigrates for every four people that migrate to France. The majority of emigrants are people that leave after finishing their studies.
France is currently struggling to pass a new immigration bill which would facilitate the deportation of unwanted foreigners, especially when a crime is committed, as well as help the regularization process for undocumented migrants working in sectors where there are labour shortages.
The bill has been criticized by all political camps. The right, which wants migration numbers to drop, thinks it’s too lax. The left thinks it’s too strict.
GNA