Lorenzo Macchi
Research expert covering society, economy, and politics for Italy
Get in touch with us nowDistribution of immigrants in Italy 2023, by region
As of December 2023, Lombardy was the region in Italy hosting the largest share of immigrants, followed by Emilia-Romagna, Lazio, and Piedmont. Lombardy is the region with the highest number of inhabitants in the country. The north Italian region has ten million residents, around one sixth of the total national population, and was housing 18,000 immigrants.
The Mediterranean route to Europe
In 2020, 955 migrants died or went missing in the Italian Central Mediterranean Sea in the attempt to reach Europe. In 2023, almost 160,000 people arrived at the Italian shores, 146,000 individuals more compared to 2019. Overall, the number of migrants increased over the last years. Death and missing cases still represent a serious hazard for the people who want to reach Italy from North Africa.
Racism on the rise in Italy
Race-related violence is strictly correlated with immigration. According to 2020 data, the cases of racial physical violence increased, in particular between 2016 and 2018. Over these three years, the cases of body violence ranged from 24 to 127 attacks. Similarly, insults, threats, and harassment became more widespread. Between 2017 and 2019, the cases grew from 88 to 206, while only in the first three months of 2020 there were 53 episodes of racist insults, threats, and harassment.
