Approximately one-third of residents would like to live in the West - survey

RIGA - One third or 33% of the Latvian population would like to go to live in the West, if there was such an opportunity, according to a survey conducted by the research agency SKDS.

In October last year, Latvian residents were asked to assess whether they would like to leave Latvia if they had the opportunity.

The survey revealed that a third or 33 percent of respondents would like to live in one of the western countries if they had the opportunity. In turn, more than half or 60 percent of the survey participants would not choose to leave Latvia with such an aim.

In recent years, the proportion of people who have expressed a wish to leave has remained almost unchanged. Meanwhile, the respondents showed the most favorable attitude towards emigration in 2009, when more than half (53 percent) of the Latvian population would have left if they had such an opportunity.

In turn, the respondents showed the greatest desire to stay in Latvia in 2016, when 65 percent of the population indicated that they would not prefer to live in one of the western countries even with such an opportunity.