Iceland is among the top countries in Europe that people are moving away from, although still to a relatively small proportion of the population as a whole.
As reported, early 2009 saw many news reports of Icelanders fleeing the country in search of a better life elsewhere, most notably in other Scandinavian countries. However, Vísir reported that when looked at within the context of Icelandic history, emigration from Iceland this time around has been relatively light.
RÚV now reports that another context within which to look at emigration statistics – other European countries – puts Iceland near the top of the list.
The French-German show Arte pointed out that the country with the largest percentage of the population leaving was Ireland, at 1.6%. This is followed by Lithuania (1.5%), Iceland and Greece tied for third place at 1.3%, and then Spain and Portugal at 1%.
At the same time, Statistics Iceland reports while about 1,230 people have moved out of Iceland in the first quarter of this year, a great many of them are citizens of foreign countries. The number of foreign nationals leaving Iceland has actually increased between 2011 and 2012, while the number of Icelanders moving away has declined.
Þóra Ágústsdóttir, the project manager of the European department of the Directorate of Labour, said there has been neither an increase nor a decrease in the number of residents of Iceland seeking work abroad.
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