The Syrian refugee crisis is expected to last two decades and put strong strains on the European economy, according to a British interpretation of a new report from the European Union.
Justine Greening, the minister in charge of Britain’s international response, said the influx will put “considerable strains” on countries and result in “political and social tensions,” as quoted by The Daily Telegraph.
The magnitude of the crisis has reached a point where it will take 20 years to enable refugees to return to their home countries or become integrated parts of society. The previous refugee measure set in the 1980s was eight years. More than 3 million refugees are expected to arrive by the end of 2017, increasing the European population by 0.4 percent.
Germany, with Chancellor Angela Merkel leading the way, has put all its faith in refugees boosting the economy in the long run. The new numbers suggest that the population increase of more than one percent will be less than the expected 0.5 percent economic growth in the country, which will lead to “a stronger downward pressure on real wages.”
The GDP for Europe as a whole will also grow less than the population increase resulting in a “negative impact on GDP per capita throughout the period.”
E.U. Economic Commissioner Pierre Moscovici had a different view of the report and overlooked the per capita expectations of the GDP.
“There will be an impact on growth that is weak but positive for the E.U. as a whole, and that will increase GDP (gross domestic product) by 0.2 to 0.3 percent by 2017,” Moscovici said in a statement Thursday.
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