From the photograph taken by the Italians in the World Report of the Migrantes Foundation, presented in mid-October, it emerges that of the almost 5 million Italians residing abroad on 2017 January 50, 34% come from the South, while a more modest weight is from the North (16 %) and the Center (XNUMX%). Nothing new under the sun, then? Not exactly.
Looking at who has actually left Italy, i.e. on the registrations in Aire, the register of Italians residing abroad, registered in 2016 for expatriation only. Compared to the previous year, the flow of Italian expats increased by 15,4% and an increase involved all regions of origin with the exception of Friuli Venezia Giulia. In 2016, more than 124 people registered with Aire for expatriation, i.e., in relation to the Italian population, 2 for every thousand inhabitants.
On the territory, the data is more heterogeneous, but it does not clearly confirm the typical North-South dichotomy, on the contrary. All the northern regions are above the 2 per thousand national average, with the exception of Liguria and Emilia Romagna, the central ones, except the Marches, and Abruzzo, Molise, Calabria and Sicily.
In the last three years, cancellations at the registry office have grown by 7,7%
The increase in departures from Italy is also confirmed by Istat data on personal data movements: in the last three years, cancellations for abroad have grown by 7,7% on average per year, while those for other Italian destinations have undergone a average decrease of 0,8%. If the tendency to move abroad rather than to another Italian municipality is strengthening everywhere, the phenomenon is more marked in the southern regions where between 2013 and 2016 there was a relatively more disappointing trend of transfers within the associated national territory to a sustained dynamics of those abroad.
Abroad, therefore, attracts Italians who in increasing numbers decide to reside there permanently. It is a widespread attraction throughout the territory: one travels beyond national borders not only from the South, to the detriment of the more traditional internal South-North trajectories, but also from the rest of the country. Italy at risk of emptying? Not for now: the migratory balance with foreign countries (difference between registered and canceled in Italian municipalities from and to abroad), in fact, is positive in all regions, signaling a positive balance due to Italy's attractiveness. It is evident, however, that the trends mentioned above sound like an alarm bell especially if associated with the well-known and far from brilliant demographic dynamics.
