Highlights of Statistics Canada projection of Cdn diversity in 2031

OTTAWA - Highlights from a Statistics Canada projection of the diversity of the Canadian population in 2031:

-About one-third, or between 29 and 32 per cent of the population, could belong to a visible minority group.

-By 2031 between 25 and 28 per cent of the population could be foreign-born.

-Almost everyone who is a visible minority - 96 per cent - will live in one of the country's 33 census metropolitan areas.

-By 2031 visible minority groups will comprise 63 per cent of the population of Toronto and 59 per cent of the population in Vancouver.

-Between now and 2031 the foreign-born population of Canada could increase about four times faster than the rest of the population.

-The South Asian population, currently the country's largest visible minority group, could more than double from about 1.3 million in 2006 to between 3.2 and 4.1 million in 2031.

-While the Chinese population in Canada is projected to increase from 1.3 million to between 2.4 and 3 million, the proportion of Chinese in Canada's visible minority spectrum will fall from 24 to 21 per cent, due to lower fertility rates.

-The Arab and West Asian groups could more than triple in size by 2031.

-More than 71 per cent of all visible minority people will be living in either Toronto, Vancouver or Montreal. Toronto's population would be one-quarter South Asian. Vancouver's population would be one-quarter Chinese.