Children make up 40 percent of Syrian migrants in the Netherlands

Of the nearly 29 thousand Syrians who officially registered with a Dutch municipality over the last two years, nearly forty percent of them are children under 18 years of age, Statistics Netherlands revealed on Wednesday. This is more than double the proportion of children arriving from other nations. The data only includes those immigrants who completed the sign-up process at a municipality. It shows that the number of Syrians registered in the country tripled in two years, as just about 15 thousand were registered by the end of 2013. The ages of recent immigrants to the country who do not have a Dutch parent varies widely based on nationality, the agency stated. About 17 percent of foreign-born people immigrating to the Netherlands are children. About 25 percent of Eritreans who moved here are younger than 18, with many aged 15-17, but among the Ethiopian community just five percent are underage. The difference in genders and family makeup also varies widely among immigrants from the three nationalities. Whereas 54 percent of all immigrants are male, that rises to 59 percent of all Syrians and 68 percent of all Eritreans and Ethiopians. Syrians are more likely to be living as part of a family, with nearly 63 percent residing with family members, 20 percent are living on their own, and 11 percent are in shelters, including asylum reception centers. Eritreans and Ethiopians both are more likely to live on their own, with 53 percent choosing that arrangement. Over 21 percent of Eritreans and 23 percent of Ethiopians live in shelters, with nearly all those remaining living with family members.