Western Europe's Losing Its Youth, as Economic Crisis and Uncertainty Drives Out Young Adults

Western Europe's Losing Its Youth, as Economic Crisis and Uncertainty Drives Out Young Adults

More and more young people are leaving Western European countries due to economic instability, unaffordable housing, and a lack of prospects. Hundreds of thousands are relocating each year from France, Germany, Italy, and Spain — while Brussels remains focused on promoting green transition and migration policies.

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According to an analysis by Le Monde, around 200,000 people leave France each year, a significant proportion of whom are university-educated and under 35. With a housing crisis, an overstretched labour market, and high taxes, the top destinations include Canada, Australia, and Germany. France24 has also reported that growing numbers of young French people are seeking more secure livelihoods abroad. According to Handelsblatt, the drivers behind this exodus include steep tax burdens, unaffordable housing, and a stagnant economy.

In Germany, emigration has reached record highs. Data from Destatis shows that in 2024, 270 ,000 German citizens left the country, including tens of thousands of young, qualified professionals moving to Switzerland, Scandinavia, or the United States.

Spanish and Italian youth are also leaving their countries en masse due to an uncertain future, low wages, and limited opportunities. Among Spaniards aged 25–34, 32% are planning to emigrate, while over 100,000 Italians move abroad each year.
Some experts have gone so far as to say these Mediterranean countries are “losing entire generations.”
The Financial Times has reported that the emigration of young talent from Italy is exacerbating the country’s population decline. In a recent year, around 156,000 Italians left the country for Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom and elsewhere—representing a 36.5% increase compared to the number who emigrated in 2023.

The Governor of the Bank of Italy has warned that the departure of skilled Italians in search of better prospects is intensifying the economic pressure caused by a rapidly ageing workforce. Italy’s population decline is among the most severe in Europe, following decades of declining birth rates.

Currently, about one quarter of Italy’s 59 million inhabitants are over the age of 65, while just 12% are children under 14. By 2040, the working-age population is expected to shrink by a further five million. Emigration is compounding the problem.
One educational programme, Interreg, has analysed youth retention and employment across Europe and found the challenge to be a complex one. Discussions among experts from Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Malta, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden—based in locations including La Réunion and Schleswig-Holstein—have clearly shown that the employment-related challenges facing young people are shared across European regions:
  • Multilevel governance and joint action plans are required
  • It is crucial to understand young people and their career paths in order to offer personalised solutions
  • To prevent early dropouts, attention must focus on the transition from school to the world of work (including vocational training
  • Improving links between young people and businesses, and promoting more effective vocational education, are also key

Experts agree that solutions must be developed locally, in close cooperation with all stakeholders — especially the young people themselves, their parents, and close relatives.

Central Europe Could Be the Winner

According to a recent analysis by Eurostat and preliminary data from the OECD, Western Europe is now beginning to confront a serious labour shortage driven by the outflow of young workers. Migration, once seen as a one-way phenomenon, is now costing the West its competitive, tax-paying youth.

While housing crises and migration-related uncertainty are causing problems in the West, these are precisely the areas where Central Europe is beginning to show its strengths.
The economic crisis in Western Europe is not only evident in market indicators but also in the fact that young, productive generations are turning their backs on the continent. In the long term, this process could undermine the economic and social stability of Western Europe — while at the same time, Central Europe stands to gain.

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