3 Million Foreign Residents in Italy

The current number of foreigners residing in Italy has reached 3 million in 2005. In 1970 foreign residents barely amounted to 100,000. This is more than a 30% per year increase over 35 years.  60% of foreigners live in the northern regions of Italy, 30% in central regions, and 10% in the South.  In major cities like Milan and Rome, foreign residents now make up over 5% of the total population.  Over 1.5 million are of European origin; 647,000 are from Africa; 472,000 from Asia; 314,000 from the Americas; and 7,000 from Oceania.