The future of the remote Faroe Islands is at risk unless the self-governing Danish territory can halt the droves of residents who are leaving to settle abroad. <\/p>\n
Located in the North Atlantic some 250 kilometres north-west of Scotland, and with a current population of 48,000, the 18-island archipelago is considering its options after statistics showed that 300 people move away each year. <\/p>\n
According to figures from parliament, the Faroese population may drop below 42,000 in 30 years and fall to 37,000 in 2052. <\/p>\n
The majority of those leaving are young people seeking education, though women in particular tend not to return. As a result, the Faroes face a gender deficit of around 2,000 women. <\/p>\n
While the islands managed to recover from economic hardship following the collapse of its fishing industry in the 1990s and currently enjoys a low unemployment rate, its ageing population through the loss of young people threatens the country's future. <\/p>\n
Sanna Svennson, 24, was born in Copenhagen but has a large family in Faroe Islands, where her mother was raised before she settled in Denmark. <\/p>\n
She visits regularly and recognises the problems the islands face because of its limited educational and cultural offerings. <\/p>\n
There really isnt very much to do thats really stimulating or interesting, which is why so many people look abroad after they finish school, Svensson told The Copenhagen Post. <\/p>\n
Edmund Joensen, one of two MPs representing the Faroe Islands in the Danish parliament, hopes Copenhagen will set aside more money for educational opportunities in order to keep young people in the Faroe Islands. <\/p>\n
The Faroe Islands are suffering from a brain drain and the islands will lack the people necessary to ensure the survival of a welfare state, Joensen told Kristeligt Dagblad. That is why we need to strengthen higher education on the Faroe Islands. <\/p>\n
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Originally posted here:<\/p>\n
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