Anita and I stress the number of non-residents commuting into Luxembourg just about every time we talk about life in Luxembourg. To us, it seems to touch nearly every part of life here. Add to that the number of non-native residents, and you have part of what makes Luxembourg City a special place.
We’re often unclear on the numbers, particularly with respect to non-native residents. You can imagine my delight, then, when I found the following article, “Luxembourg: A City of 156 nationalities,” in 352 Luxembourg Magazine, the leading English-language weekly in Luxembourg.
The article’s origin is the multilingual news site, news352.lu. Due to their gracious permission, I will quote the entire article, which was written by Adam Walder:
There is no doubt, the capital of Luxembourg is an extremely cosmopolitan city. According to the mayor of Luxembourg the City has no fewer than 156 different nationalities. In total, foreign residents are even more than native Luxembourgers.
91,857. This is the figure released this morning, that has been doing the rounds, and a figure that Luxembourg’s mayor Paul Helminger, is particularly proud of.
This is the figure for the number of inhabitants in the capital in late 2009. A great leap forward, since the population was 89,907 in late 2008. “12,000 arrivals a year, it’s huge!” Exclaimed the delighted mayor. To this figure the internal migration must also be added to the City. 7,000 people have simply changed neighbourhoods.
“Luxembourg is a highly mobile city” continues to brag Paul Helminger which highlights the fact that in 2009 there were more births than deaths (1,099 against 635).
Many Portuguese and French
The most striking information released is the percentage of foreign residents: over 64% of the total population is of foreign nationality. Among the most represented countries are the obvious ones with 13,990 Portuguese and 12,536 French. They are mainly located in Bonnevoie or Kirchberg.
The residents of Luxembourg nationality however are much less likely to live in the capital: they represent only 35% of the total population. “We have noticed, even since 2007, that the population figure of Luxembourg nationality has increased slightly†stated Paul Helminger.
The voting problem
A big dilemma is noticed when you look at the number of residents of Luxembourg City registered to vote. There are 223 non-Luxembourgish voters less than in 2008. “This is probably due to migration movements” the mayor said adding “but an effort must be made. I can not imagine running a city with more than 60% foreigners, and they can not vote! ”
I think this is a great presentation of the numbers, and a bit of local perspective on their implications. Thanks again to Mr Walder and news352.lu for their good work.
Reference: Walder, Adam. (24 Feb 2010). Luxembourg: A City of 156 nationalities. Retrieved from http://hello.news352.lu/index.php?p=edito&id=24320