With the population of the world increasing at such an astounding rate, it is quite a shock to learn about these top 12 countries with declining population.
The latest population report issued by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat titled “World Population Prospects: The 2015 Revision” expects the number of people in the world to increase to 9.7 billion by 2050. Admittedly, that is a huge number, but when we look deeper into population statistics, the fact that reveals itself is that the rate of population growth has decreased over the years. About a decade ago, the population was showing a steady increase of 1.24% annually, while this percentage has now dropped to 1.18% per year.
The main reason for the decrease in the global population growth rate is the decline in birth rates in almost every nation. Birth or fertility rates refer to the number of offspring that an average woman gives birth to in her lifetime. In some countries, the drop in these rates has been more drastic than others. So much so that their population has decreased over the past few years instead of increasing which is the normal trend. Not surprisingly, almost all these countries are in Europe.
The average birth rate in Europe is 1.55 babies per woman, and that has some people quite worried. Since birth rates are declining, the average age of citizens in these nations is increasing. Due to this phenomena, there are hoards of retired people in these areas who are unable to work, which may hinder economic growth. Some sources even went as far as to say that Europe may be dying down completely with its population graph plummeting. While that is a little too extreme, it is true that a population decline can be problematic sometimes because of the fact mentioned above that the working class may dwindle.
There are various situations that cause the decline in a population. The major ones are emigration in search of higher education and low birth rates like in European countries. However, the rise in emigration due to wars and instability can also cause the number of people in an area to go down. Nations with this problem usually have a high orphan population, as is evident in another of our lists: 11 countries with the highest orphan population.
To compile these countries with a declining population, we once again referred to the United Nations. Their report on overall population growth, which compiles the annual rate of population change of every country, starts from the year 1950. We took the most recent figures, though that is the percentage of change from 2010 to 2015. We excluded places that were not sovereign states: for example Saint Helena, a British Overseas Territory and not a nation on its own. Now let’s get down to business and begin with the list of top 12 countries with declining population.
11. Croatia
Rate of Population Decline: 0.36% (tie with Ukraine)
We start our list of top 12 countries with declining population with Croatia, a European country whose population decline was quite predictable as in 2015 the number of babies born in the country was the least it has ever been in the preceding 25 years!
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11. Ukraine
Rate of Population Decline: 0.36% (tie with Croatia)
Ukraine is next on our list and there are two reasons for it. The most apparent one seems to be the war in Donbass, an eastern region of the nation. The war has been going on since 2014, and while the lives of thousands have been lost during the course of it, the reality is that Ukraine’s population was shrinking long before these unfortunate events. The average life expectancy in Ukraine is also low which results in the births not being able to compensate for the deaths.
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10. Greece
Rate of Population Decline: 0.40%
The birth rate of Greece that ranks 10th in our list of top 12 countries with declining population has fallen even below 1.5 over the past few years. The decline is mostly attributed to the economic crisis that the country is currently suffering, which has had a negative impact on employment rates causing births to decrease. Experts emphasize more on the unemployment rates among women which have a larger influence on fertility because of a woman’s unwillingness to bear children if she does not think herself capable of providing for them.
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9. Portugal
Rate of Population Decline: 0.45%
Portugal ranks 9th in our list of top 12 countries with declining population. It is yet another European country where the financial crisis has caused birth rates to lessen at a rapid rate. Due to this, the average age of the population has increased while thousands of young people are emigrating from the country to find employment opportunities.
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8. Serbia
Rate of Population Decline: 0.47%
With the rate Serbia is going, it is expected to lose 17% of its population by the year 2050! For a country with merely 8.8 million people residing in it at present, that is quite astonishing as they would be left with only 7 million.
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7. Bulgaria
Rate of Population Decline: 0.71%
According to the United Nation’s population projections, Bulgaria is number one on the list of countries whose population is expected to decrease from 2015 to 2050. The rate of decline is predicted to be 27.9%, the highest of any nation.
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6. Romania
Rate of Population Decline: 0.79%
Romania is another country whose population is decreasing quite rapidly. In 2015, the number of deaths in the country increased by 3.3% as compared to 2014, and while the birth rates also increased a bit, they could not compete with the deaths causing a net decline in population.
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5. Latvia
Rate of Population Decline: 1.18%
Latvia has grabbed the 5th place on our list of top 12 countries with declining population, with a large jump in the rate of decline compared to its predecessor. Latvia has a small population of just over 2 million, because its citizens are mainly moving to other European countries. Birth rates are also not high.
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4. Georgia
Rate of Population Decline: 1.21%
The government of Georgia is so concerned about the declining population in their country that they have launched a database which provides the details of every person who is single and residing in Georgia. In their opinion, this might bring people together and control the dropping birth rates.
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3. Lithuania
Rate of Population Decline: 1.63%
Migration is a problem that is quite serious for Lithuania. With so many young students leaving the country, mostly towards the UK, the country is facing difficulty in enrolling a reasonable number of students in its universities. Furthermore, the economy is also suffering due to a shortage of skill.
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2. The Syrian Arab Republic
Rate of Population Decline: 2.27%
It is common knowledge that Syria has been suffering since the past five years. The civil war that started in 2011 has now attracted the interest of many countries, but none could restore peace in this unfortunate country. While population decline is the last thing on the mind of the country’s citizens, it is true that the war has claimed more than 450,000 people’s lives and caused thousands to emigrate to find more peaceful homes for themselves, making Syria the only non-European country on our list.
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1. Andorra
Rate of Population Decline: 3.61%
Number 1 on our list of top 12 countries with declining population is Andorra with a phenomenal rate of decrease. Although the life expectancy of people in this nation is extremely high, the reason for the decrease in population is the same as in all European countries: the number of births.
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