Another challenge for the coast is the aging population. There is almost 1 in 3 older than 65 in the coastal municipalities. The number of elderly people is increasing while there are fewer and fewer children and young people. That is also a problem for companies that are looking for employees. The blue economy is also looking for specialized staff. Tom Bulcke, Voka region of Ostend: “Let us give us economic prosperity with governments and knowledge centers. Let the permits come faster, let’s give training to employees and non-active so that we get more people to work here. ”
A few more findings: unemployment on the coast is just under 5 percent. And that is more than the Flemish average. Tourism remains the largest economic sector with an annual turnover of 3.9 million euros. And finally, it appears that the coastal municipalities count more than the average number of disadvantaged neighborhoods.