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“The last time Manitoba’s population grew by close to 17,000 people in 12 months, Shaft and Dirty Harry were playing at the box office, John Lennon’s Imagine topped the Billboard charts and The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty was listed amongst the New York Times’ bestselling novels,” Entrepreneurship, Training and Trade Minister Peter Bjornson said.
 
According to the Manitoba Bureau of Statistics (MBS), provincial growth of nearly 17,000 individuals would translate into a 1.4 per cent increase that will likely place Manitoba ahead of the national growth rate and in the top tier among the provinces, the largest 12-month growth rate since at least 1971 when modern-day record keeping began.
 
“People from other countries have chosen Manitoba to be their new home because this province offers good jobs and a place where new Manitobans can build a better future for themselves and their families,” said Bjornson.
 
Driving this record-breaking growth were people moving to Manitoba from around the world, the minister said.  Over the last 12 months, an estimated total of 13,101 immigrants made their new homes in Manitoba.  This is well above the 10,902 who arrived in the previous 12-month period.  It is also the largest immigrant arrival since at least 1971.
 
According to MBS estimates, Manitoba’s population stood at 1,226,000 as of Oct. 1.  This is 16,900 more people since Oct. 1, 2008, for a 1.4 per cent increase.
 
Much of the growth during the last several years can be attributed to the success of the Provincial Nominee Program, Bjornson said, adding the program has resulted in historic growth in Manitoba’s immigration population.  Of the more than 13,100 individuals who arrived in Manitoba during the last 12 months, over three-quarters were provincial nominees.