Foreigners in Wroclaw. How many?

According to Wroclaw's magistrate Civil Affairs Department, in the city there are ca. 3 700 foreigners registered for either permanent, or temporary residence. The most numerous groups are: Ukrainians (1345), then Germans (355), Koreans (347), Belarussians (275), and Russians (253).

"This is official data, passed on by the City Hall. I'm sure not all foreigners living in Wroclaw are enlisted in this register" says Olga Chrebor, the programme coordinator for the Kalejdoskop Kultur Festival, which is aimed at promoting Wroclaw's multi-culturalism.

Among other nationalities in Wroclaw, there are also: Turks, Japanese, Americans, Italians, Frenchmen, Greeks, Armenians, Bulgarians, Czechs and Austrians. With 591 000 people registered officially in Wroclaw, the foreigners make up just a fraction of Wroclaw's population (0,67%). However, as Chrebor points out, "It is the minorities that add to a city's multiculturalism, people who are Polish citizens, often Poland-born, but still considering themselves representatives of different nation/ethnic group, and cherishing its culture."

Therer are ca. 8 500 such residents in the greater area of Lower Silesia. According to the 2002 population census, the most numerous group are the Lemkos (3082), then there are Germans (1792), Ukrainians (1319) and Roma (1319). 

Recently, a project entitled "Nowa Przystań" (A New Haven) was carried out, aimed at foreign residents of Wroclaw from outside the EU. As a part of it, 30 newcomers to Wroclaw (mainly Ukrainians) took part in a Polish language course and vocation trainings.