Spain: 133,000 new Moroccans in one year, but an educational gap pointed out

The demographic balance sheet for 2024 is contrasted. On the one hand, the large Spanish cities are emptying of their local residents, driven out by "unsustainable" rents; on the other hand, the country has welcomed an additional 1.28 million foreigners. Among them, Moroccans occupy the second step of the podium with 133,130 new arrivals, just behind Colombians but ahead of Venezuelans.

However, the National Institute of Statistics (INE) has published for the first time detailed data on the profile of these migrants, and the comparison is harsh for the Kingdom. According to the report, Moroccan nationals have the lowest level of education among the new arrivals: 59% of them have only primary education.

This figure contrasts sharply with that of the French living in Spain, who have the highest level (52.1% with higher education degrees), or even Spaniards returning to the country. A disparity that is reflected in the labor market, where the majority of these immigrants hold "elementary jobs" or positions in the hotel industry.

Meanwhile, the housing crisis is redrawing the map of the country. Madrid and Catalonia are posting record negative internal migration balances: residents are leaving the ship in the face of inflation. In Madrid, the deficit reaches nearly 13,000 people, who have left to seek a better quality of life in the suburbs or the Valencia region, the big winner of this demographic redistribution.