The demographics and living conditions of immigrants in Groruddalen, Søndre Nordstrand, Gamle Oslo and Grünerløkka

In this report, we describe the demographics and living conditions of immigrants and Norwegian-born to immigrant parents in seven districts of Oslo: Bjerke, Grorud, Stovner, Alna, Søndre Nordstrand, Gamle Oslo and Grünerløkka, and in the area covered by the initiative called "Områdeløft Tøyen."

We compare the development of immigrants and Norwegian-born to immigrant parents in the focus area with the development in the general population. We also compare the conditions in Oslo as a whole and nationwide in order to illustrate what is typical for those living in the focus area, and what are the general characteristics in Oslo and for the country as a whole.

In three of our districts, Stovner, Alna and Søndre Nordstrand, persons with an immigrant background represent the majority of the population, while in the rest of Groruddalen this group represents slightly less than 50 per cent of the population. The proportion in the two central districts is lower, with "only" around 35 per cent. The percentage in Oslo is 31 per cent, and in the country as a whole 15 per cent.

Most persons with an immigrant background living in Oslo come from Pakistan (22 000), while 13-14 000 are from each of the countries Poland, Sweden and Somalia. There are large differences between the districts: persons with a background from Pakistan and Sri Lanka are most represented in Oslo outer east, while in Oslo inner east the majority of immigrants are from Somalia, Poland and Sweden.

Norwegian-born to immigrant parents constitutes a much larger proportion of the population in Groruddalen and Søndre Nordstrand than in Oslo and in the country as a whole (16 per cent compared to 7 and 2.5 per cent respectively).

Because the large increase in immigration in recent years has focused on other regions than the capital, the proportion with a short period of residence is lower among immigrants in Oslo. In Oslo, the proportion with a short period of residence is much larger in central districts than elsewhere in our region.

Family (reunion or establishment) is the most common reason for immigration in all our regions, and is even more common in Oslo outer east than elsewhere. In Oslo inner east, work is a more common reason for immigration than elsewhere.

Oslo's population grew by 14 per cent in the period from 2008 to 2014, but there is great variation between the districts: with the exception of Bjerke, Groruddalen and Søndre Nordstrand are far below this level, while the growth in the population in Gamle Oslo and Grünerløkka has been almost twice as strong. Grünerløkka has experienced growth in the number of persons with an immigrant background of over 50 per cent over the past six years, while Bjerke and Gamle Oslo's growth is close to the average of 40 per cent. Søndre Nordstrand has the lowest growth, with 23 per cent.

In the population without an immigrant background, the growth in Oslo is 4 per cent in six years. Growth in Grünerløkka and Gamle Oslo is 13-14 per cent. There has been a decline in the number of persons with a non-immigrant background in all districts except Bjerke. The decline has been greatest in Stovner.

The proportion of immigrant children who go to kindergarten (61 per cent) is lower than the proportion among the population in general (70 per cent). Over the past six years, the proportion of minority language children in kindergarten has increased twice as much as the others. The proportion of immigrant children who go to kindergarten varies from 53 per cent in Grünerløkka to 68 per cent in Søndre Nordstrand.

Immigrants score lower than the general population in all aspects of the education system. Those born in Norway to immigrant parents have a higher score, and in some areas score higher than persons without an immigrant background.

In all groups, girls have higher school points than boys. Immigrants have the lowest, and those without an immigrant background have the highest. Norwegian-born children of immigrant parents have relatively poor results in Gamle Oslo, but fare much better in Grünerløkka and Søndre Nordstrand. Differences in school results are related to differences in parental education and length of residence in Norway.

A higher share of girls than boys complete their upper secondary education, and a higher share of pupils without an immigrant background complete than Norwegian-born pupils to immigrant parents. The lowest share of pupils who complete is among immigrants. Throughput for immigrants is much poorer than for other groups in all districts, except Alna. In Groruddalen, the throughput for Norwegian-born to immigrant parents is almost the same as for the general population. In the Grorud district, however, the throughput for Norwegian-born to immigrant parents is higher.

More women than men aged 19-24 are in education. Norwegian-born to immigrant parents (men and women) have a higher study frequency than those without an immigrant background. This is not the case, however, for Oslo as a whole, and especially not in Gamle Oslo and Grünerløkka. Study frequency varies widely by parental education. Among the Norwegian-born to immigrant parents, a much lower percentage of the parents have a higher education.

The employment rate for 25-54 year-olds is highest for the general population, higher also than among immigrants from the EU etc. In many of the districts, the employment rate among immigrants from Africa, Asia etc. is 25 percentage points lower than among the general population. The employment rate for Norwegian-born to immigrant parents is often between the two other groups. The gender disparity among immigrants is much larger than in the other groups, and there are also major disparities depending on the country of origin. The employment rate varies more for women than men in the districts: the greatest disparity is in Stovner district, with 22 percentage points. In recent years, employment growth has been somewhat more favourable for immigrants than for the general population.

Unemployment among immigrants from Africa, Asia etc. is quite similar in Norway, in Oslo and in our districts, and is four to five times higher than in the general population.

Lower employment also means that the income level is lower for immigrants than for the general population, and in Oslo is slightly lower for immigrants from Africa, Asia etc. than from the EU etc. In Oslo outer east, there are several districts where immigrants from Africa, Asia etc. have a higher median household income than those from the EU etc. Those from Africa, Asia etc. in Søndre Nordstrand have the highest income. Due to lower employment and larger households with more children, the proportion of transfers is much higher among those with a background from Africa, Asia etc. than for others.

Groruddalen and Søndre Nordstrand make up 27 per cent of Oslo's population, 38 per cent of immigrants and 60 per cent of Norwegian-born to immigrant parents. Bjerke has the least typical composition of the population of these districts. Gamle Oslo and Grünerløkka are more similar to the city average.