Provincial population growing

Saskatchewan's population has hit a new all-time high of 1,057,884 people following the largest quarterly population jump ever recorded since Statistics Canada starting keeping quarterly population estimates.

Between April 1, 2011 and July 1, 2011, Saskatchewan grew by 5,444 people. This growth consisted of a natural increase (births minus deaths) of 1,524, net inter-provincial migration of 1,239 and net international migration of 2,681. Saskatchewan saw net in-migration from most other provinces including Ontario (641 people), Alberta (423 people) and Manitoba (147 people).

Premier Brad Wall said the new population numbers show the continued strength of the Saskatchewan's economy.

"People move where the opportunities are and right now, there are a lot more people moving into Saskatchewan than moving out," Wall said. "It wasn't too long ago that the situation was completely reversed and more people were moving away. Today, Saskatchewan is on the right track and our government is working hard to make sure it stays that way."

Since the current government took office, Saskatchewan has grown by over 50,000 people - from 1,007,614 in January 1, 2008 to 1,057,884 on July 1, 2011. That is the largest population growth during a single term of office for any government since 1925 to 1929.

"There were those who said it would be impossible for Saskatchewan to grow by 100,000 people in 10 years, which is really only growing at the national average," Wall said. "The fact is - Saskatchewan has been growing by far more than the national average for several years now. We're up 50,000 people in just three and a half years, so hitting 1.1 million people by 2015 is well within reach."

Saskatchewan's population is also bucking the national trend by getting younger. The median age in Saskatchewan is now 37.3 years. That's the second-lowest among the provinces and Saskatchewan is one of only two provinces to see its median age get younger in the past year. In fact, since 2007, Saskatchewan's median age has dropped from 38.0 to 37.3.

Wall said this reflects the fact that more young people and young families are choosing to stay in Saskatchewan or are moving back to Saskatchewan.

"That means good things for our province's future," Wall said. "A growing population and economy provides a growing tax base which allows government to lower taxes and fund important government services like health care, highways and education."