Causes and Dangers of Population Blindness: Why Does the Evidence of the Crisis not Elicit Adequate Reactions to the Intensity of the Challenge? Does the Istat Forecasting Methodology Risk Limiting the Phenomenon to Inland Areas and Southern Italy?

Abstract

The study highlights that Italy’s demographic crisis will worsen in 2027-42. In this context, the loss of skilled young people to other countries accelerates the crisis. The exodus of young people from across Italy is driven by wage dumping affecting those from the South and Inner areas, regions where a lack of essential public services puts them at a disadvantage, making them willing to accept mediocre working conditions in the North. Valuing young people, regardless of where they live, is the prerequisite for any effort to restore demographic balance. However, the methodology used for Istat population forecasts treats internal migration flows as static, thereby prompting policymakers to seek solutions elsewhere.