The 2024 edition of the annual immigration report by Caritas and Migrantes reveals a rise in the foreign population in Italy, coupled with increasing poverty among this group.
The employment rate of non-EU foreign workers last year was sixty point seven percent, closely aligning with the sixty-one point five percent rate of all workers in Italy. However, nearly one in four foreigners seeking assistance from a Caritas center was classified as "working poor," representing twenty-eight point one percent.
These statistics were included in an annual immigration report published on October 16 by the Catholic charity and the Migrantes Foundation. Overall, from 2019 to 2023, the demand for immigrant workers has risen significantly.
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Students and residents of foreign origins on the rise
The number of foreign residents in Italy rose in 2023, with five point three million non-EU citizens residing in the country as of January 2024, reflecting a three point two percent increase from the previous year. This figure represents an increase of 166,000 and accounts for nine percent of Italy's total population.
The number of school-age children of foreign origin also grew, reaching 915,000, or eleven point two percent of the total.
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Bishops conference rails against emergency approach
The Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI) responded by advocating for easier paths to Italian citizenship. Secretary and Cagliari Archbishop Giuseppe Baturi emphasized the need for reforms, particularly to change citizenship laws so that children of migrants can obtain citizenship after completing compulsory education (ius scholae).
Meanwhile, as centers for processing asylum claims for migrants wanting to come to Italy began operating, the president of the organization, Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, wrote in the report that immigration is mainly managed as an emergency while it could represent a resource for society.
"We often see the continuation of an approach that is only guided by the emergency which neglects promotion and integration: we forget that immigration, if well managed, can be a resource for society," he stated. Moreover, "excessive politicization of the migration phenomenon, based on the search for consensus and on fears, prevents the creation of an authentic hosting system" that is not "self-serving."
"Instead, this is what we need for our own safety," wrote Zuppi.
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Rise in demand for immigrant workers
The report indicated a significant increase in the demand for immigrant workers from 2019 to 2023, with the share of foreign workers among new hires rising from thirteen point six percent in 2019 to nineteen point two percent in 2023. The services sector experienced the most substantial growth, increasing by fifty-eight point nine percent, particularly in caregiving and domestic help, which rose by ten point six percent.
Most of this demand was for "unqualified personnel." The report noted that immigrant women have a lower employment rate than their Italian counterparts and other foreign workers. Unemployment rates were highest among young non-EU workers at forty-two percent, followed by EU workers at thirty-eight point six percent and Italians at thirty-four percent, partly due to high school dropout rates.
Additionally, Caritas data revealed that nearly one in four foreigners seeking assistance are classified as working poor and struggle to access government support against poverty. Family and informal support systems remain crucial for resilience during economic hardship and are seen as the most reliable sources of assistance for migrants in Italy.