EDMONTON – Alberta’s population has topped four million people for the first time.
Statistics Canada says as of July 1, the number of people living in the province reached 4,025,074.
That is up 3.4 per cent over one year — the largest increase in Canada. Over the previous year, Alberta’s population grew by 136,000 people.
“We’re proud of our caring communities and our shared strength in the face of challenge,” said Premier Alison Redford in a news release. “It’s what defines Alberta and why, over the next decade, we will continue to welcome people to Canada’s fastest-growing province. The new population benchmark we’ve reached today reaffirms what we already know – that we can’t afford to stop building Alberta. Our quality of life depends on it.”
The province stresses it has a plan to respond to growth pressures.
Statistics Canada says Alberta’s population growth is largely due to international and interprovincial migration.
Alberta’s population has doubled since 1978, when its population stood at two million. In the 22 years after that, Alberta’s population grew by another million, reaching three million in 2000. In the next 13 years, the province added the next million, with Alberta’s population passing the four million mark in July.
Alberta’s population is expected to reach the five million mark by 2027 and six million by 2041.
At 36.1 years, Alberta has the lowest median age of all the provinces. Alberta has the highest growth rate from natural increase of all the provinces, relative to their population size. Alberta led the provinces and territories in economic growth and employment growth in each of the past two years.
With files from The Canadian Press
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