Saskatchewan is growing, but more slowly than most provinces

The numbers are in and Saskatchewan is getting bigger.Slowly.

New numbers from Statistics Canada say Saskatchewan's population is estimated to be 1,174,462 as of July 1.

That'san increase of 11,484 persons sinceJuly 1, 2018.

The second quarter of the year saw Saskatchewan's population increase by3,435 people, or0.29 per cent, which puts the Land of the Living Skiesin the second lowest spot of all ten provinces.

Who had the biggest boosts? Prince Edward Island and Ontario had the largest annual growth rates among the provinces.

Preliminary data suggests that in the second quarter6,073 Canadian residents moved to Saskatchewan. But we also lost8,792 Canadian residents for a net interprovincial loss of 2,719 persons. Alberta was the primary source of Saskatchewan's migration movement.

The province still ended up ahead, though, due to births and international arrivals.

Saskatchewan said "Welcome to Canada" to4,510 people from international migration, up from 2,535 people in the first quarter of 2019. These numbers are consistent with 2018, where it saw net international migration in the second quarter of 4,507.

Lots of spring babies were born in Saskatchewan, with 3,925 births. Meanwhile,2,281 people died, for a natural increase of 1,644. Last year the natural increase in the same quarter was 1,686.

As for the medianage of Saskatchewan residents, theyare on par with the other two Prairie provinces, sitting at 37.4 years of age. Nunavut has the lowest age demographic at 26.2 years of age, while Newfoundland and Labrador is the oldest province with a median age of 46.5.