The population of Canada has broken its own record this time. According to the data from Statistics Canada, the country’s population has increased by more than a million people for the first time in history in 2022 due to a surge in immigrants and temporary residents.

As of January 1, the country’s population hit 39,566,248 after adding 1,050,110 people over the previous 12 months — a sizeable gain the likes of which has not been seen since the post-war baby boom of the 1950s.

As per the government statistical agency, international migration accounted for nearly all of the growth at 95.9%.

Faced with near-record low unemployment (5%) and an aging population — with one in seven people in Canada between the ages of 55 and 64 years — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau‘s government doubled its target for welcoming newcomers since coming to power in 2015.

The Canadian government keeps announcing several initiatives to recruit migrants to the country to ease labour shortages.

Last year, the Justin Trudeau government announced a plan to welcome half a million immigrants a year by 2025.

The country has also welcomed people affected by conflicts like the Ukraine war, the Afghanistan crisis, and earthquake victims from Turkey and Syria.

In 2022, Canada welcome 437,000 immigrants while the number of non-permanent residents increased by 607,782.

Under a three-year plan announced in November, the Trudeau government wants to continue increasing annual immigration targets, with a goal to grant permanent residency to 465,000 people in 2023 and increasing that goal to 500,000 people by 2025.

Immigration accounts for almost 100% of Canada’s labor force growth and by 2036 immigrants are projected to be about 30% of Canada’s population, up from 20.7% in 2011, according to Canada’s immigration ministry.

While Canadians generally have positive views of immigration, the latest influx, according to Statistics Canada, will pose challenges in areas of housing, infrastructure and transportation, and services.