Tuesday, March 16, 2004

Spotlight: Black population

Dramatic shift in origin of Black immigrants

Blacks have immigrated to Canada from many countries, but their origins have shifted dramatically during the past four decades.

Among foreign-born Blacks who arrived in Canada before 1961, only 1% were born in Africa, while about 72% came from the Caribbean, and Central and South America.

However, among those who arrived during the 1990s, about 48% were born in Africa, virtually the same proportion (47%) as those born in the Caribbean, and Central and South America.

One-third of the 4,400 Blacks who arrived in Canada prior to 1961 were born in Jamaica. Those from Barbados accounted for 15%, the United Kingdom 6%, Trinidad and Tobago 6%, and the United States 5%.

Of the 139,800 Black immigrants who arrived in Canada between 1991 and 2001, one-fifth came from Jamaica, 12% from Haiti and 10% from Somalia.

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© 2004, Statistics Canada.