For the first time since migration mass of Europeans to America at the beginning of the 20th century, the number of foreigners living in Uruguay is increasing, this time driven by a wave of arrivals from Venezuela and Cuba.
Foreign residents represent 3% of the 3.4 million inhabitants Uruguayans in 2023, compared to 2% a decade ago, data from the country’s latest census show. It is the first increase since 1908. The political and economic turmoil in Venezuela and Cuba over the last decade has caused an exodus of its residents to South America already USA.
Relative economic stability, higher wages, job security, and its vaunted public education system make Uruguay in an attractive destination, say the immigrants, despite the high cost of living.
The imprint of Venezuela in Uruguay
This month, in the capital, Montevideo, Volunteers at the Venezuelan community’s annual Christmas party were tasked with wrapping a record number of small “Santa Claus” gifts to distribute to children. “When we started six years ago, we were just a few families getting together to prepare gifts for the children most in need,” said Vanessa Sarmiento, who helps organize the festive event.
This year, 4,000 people packed Montevideo’s Migration Museum to enjoy live bands, bouncy castles and stalls selling traditional dishes. “Many have come to Uruguay, It is estimated that the population will continue to increase,” he stated.
Sarmiento co-founded “Manos Veneguayas” in 2017, a nonprofit that helps Venezuelan immigrants settle in Uruguay, where the government has sought to welcome foreign workers to bolster its dwindling population.
The attractiveness of the country
The Venezuelan community has tripled to 33,000 in five years. During the same period, almost 30,000 Cubans have arrived in the country, but they often move quickly to other places, using Uruguay as a springboard to reach USA and Europe.
The demographic specialist Martin Koolhaas He said that, unlike other countries on the continent where rising immigrant populations are increasingly perceived as a pressure on public services, the trend is “very positive” for Uruguay, because it helps to counteract the historical problem of being the country with the lowest birth rate on the continent.
Part of Uruguay’s appeal is an “exemplary” immigration regime, according to Sarmiento. “It took me three months to find a job and all the necessary documentation,” said Luiz Paz, 55, from Maracaibo, Venezuela, who followed his eldest daughter to Montevideo last year around this time. “I feel calm. They give us the same rights (as the Uruguayans) and I intend to stay.”
Source: Ambito
