The population of north east Groningen is set to shrink by 16% by 2025, a situation which needs tackling urgently, according to a government task force looking in to population developments.

And in the east of the province, the population will go down by 9%, the Topteam Krimp report said.
According to the national statistics office CBS, the Dutch population as a whole is set to grow by 9.4% by 2025.
‘Without active policy, the province will have to cope with increasing empty housing and a reduction in property values, rising poverty and social segregation,’ the report stated. ‘The quality, availability and affordability of services such as education and health will also come under pressure.’
For example, over the past 30 years, the north eastern industrial town of Delfzijl has lost 30% of its residents.