Saskatchewan government touts 'decade of growth' as StatsCan numbers show population over 1.1M

The Saskatchewan government is celebrating its growing population, as the number of people in the province hit an estimated 1,168,057 in October, according to data released Wednesday by Statistics Canada.

That number reflects growth in the province's population following years of decline. According to Statistics Canada, there were 1,009,613 people in the province back in 1986 — previously the highest population recorded in the province — but the number declined after that, hitting 968,157 in 2006.

"I believe we are now entering a second decade of growth and that Saskatchewan's best days are still ahead," Premier Brad Wall said in a press release, in which the government touted a growing population.

The latest estimates from the agency are based on 2011 census counts, and were adjusted for census net undercoverage and incompletely enumerated First Nations reserves. The estimated population growth for the period from May 10, 2011, to Oct. 1 of this year — the date of the estimate — was added to arrive at the 1,168,057 number.

Statistics Canada carries out a reverse record check to measure census population undercoverage, estimating the number of people missed in the census, following each census.

Population numbers for the 2016 census, adjusted for undercoverage, will be released in September of next year.