Due to demographic issues, Portugal welcomes migrants with open arms

Amid the rise of populism across Europe, which has shifted many governments of the old continent to the right and directed political sharpness towards refugees and migrants, Portugal stands out as perhaps currently the only country in Europe that does not refuse to accept immigrants, writes Silvije Tomašević for Večernji.

Currently, most European countries are pursuing a strict policy towards refugees and migrants, which cannot be said for Portugal, which is probably the only country in Europe that wants to accept people.

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The local government, unlike its Italian, Austrian, or Hungarian counterparts, does not create a distinction between the local population and migrants. Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa explains that the Portuguese population is in numerical decline, which leads to the need for immigrants.

– We have a need for greater immigration and do not tolerate any xenophobic rhetoric, emphasizes Costa.

Regulating the status of legal migrants

According to government analyses conducted in Lisbon, Portugal needs about 75,000 new residents each year to maintain the number of working-age people in a population of about 10.4 million. For this reason, a process has also been initiated to regulate the status of about 30,000 individuals who have legally entered Portugal from other countries.

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During the three-year financial crisis that began in 2011, as many as 300,000 residents left Portugal in search of work in other countries, among whom were many young people with higher education. Only last year was a positive migration balance recorded, which, according to data from the national statistical office, was noted for the first time in six years. In the same year, Portuguese authorities issued 61,400 new residence permits, which is 31 percent more compared to 2016. Currently, foreigners make up 6 percent of the total population in Portugal.

Despite economic improvement and the acceptance of refugees, migrants are reluctant to choose Portugal, instead opting to move towards Northern Europe. This country was also among the first EU countries to express readiness to accept refugees who arrived on the Lifeline vessel when it was stranded on June 21 because Italy did not want to open its borders.

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Last week, EU leaders discussed how many refugees each country should accept who were rescued at sea off North Africa, and Portugal has already taken measures to become an immigration country.

On Sunday, 30 migrants from the same ship arrived from Malta to Portugal thanks to an ad hoc agreement on the acceptance of migrants made by European governments.