Turkey's largest cities experienced highest migration influx and outflow in 2022

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Turkey's three largest cities, namely İstanbul, Ankara, and İzmir, took the lead as both recipients and contributors to internal migration in the country last year, Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) figures have revealed.

According to the statistics, approximately 2.8 million people, or 3.27% of the population, migrated from one city to another across the nation in 2022. Nearly 480,000 of the individuals migrated between provinces for better housing and living conditions.

İstanbul took the top spot by receiving 385,294 migrants. Following closely were the capital city Ankara with 189,104 migrants and İzmir, the third-largest city, with 132,426 migrants. The number of people leaving these cities was 418,082, 161,912, and 107,312, respectively.

One of the main factors contributing to the increase in migration from these major cities to other regions could be the rising cost of living and housing expenses, particularly affecting larger cities. These effects were particularly evident in the year 2020, which saw the beginning of these impacts and was further influenced by the Covid-19 pandemic. Notably, İstanbul's population experienced a decline in that year for the first time in two decades.

Conversely, the provinces with the least immigration were Ardahan with 5,391 migrants, Bayburt with 7,031 migrants, and Kilis with 8,008 migrants. On the other hand, the provinces with the lowest emigration were Tunceli with 7,578 migrants, Kilis with 7,629 migrants, and Ardahan with 8,157 migrants.

Age groups

In Turkey, the most significant migration movement in terms of magnitude in 2022 was within the 20-24 age group, totaling 643,998 individuals. Of this age group, 42.5% were men and 57.5% were women.

The primary driver for migration within this age group was education. Of the migrants, 257,676 moved for educational purposes, 91,612 for employment or job opportunities, and 50,338 for improved housing and living conditions.

Out of the 2,791,156 individuals who migrated between provinces last year, 591,790 were dependent migrants, moving to be with a family member. Among them, 237,574 were men and 354,216 were women. (HA/VK)