Here, a growing population is the solution

FOR a modern developed nation, Australia is taking a less-travelled path to prosperity. It wants more Australians.

An overlooked aspect of the Pacific nation’s economic outperformance has been the ability to attract a quarter of a million migrants every year, underpinning the demand for everything from homes to cars, schools and hospitals.

New South Wales, Australia’s most populous state, plans to splurge A$60-billion (about R550-bil- lion) on infrastructure in just the next four years to meet growing demand.

Having more people clearly entails all sorts of environmental challenges. But again, Australia is better placed than many to cope.

Although much of the hinterland is bush, there is plenty of living room on its 26 000km of fertile coastline. Its cities are among the least densely populated on the planet, despite holding the vast bulk of the nation’s 23 million residents.

A strong economy and low unemployment have helped to attract and keep well-educated and skilled settlers, many of whom have already lined up employment before they arrive. There is a clear path to permanent residence and, five years after getting that, to citizenship.

About 129 000 migrants entered on skilled visas in the year to June, with a similar number planned for 201314. The biggest sources of recent migrants are China, India, the UK and New Zealand.