2024-07-27 15:34:25
Russia has faced numerous demographic challenges since the collapse of the USSR, including an aging population, a shrinking male population due to the war in Ukraine and the lowest birth rate in 17 years.
The Kremlin said it was working hard to reverse Russia’s declining birthrate, warning that “catastrophic” demographic trends put the country’s future at risk.
“Right now it’s at an awfully low level of 1.4 (children per woman). This is comparable to European countries, Japan, etc. and it is catastrophic for the future of the nation,” Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov said.
“Anyone who has many children is a hero. We live in the greatest country in the world, but every year there are fewer of us. The only way to deal with this is to increase the average birth rate,” said Peskov.
When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Russia’s population was about 148 million, and now that figure is about 144 million after a long period of high death and low birth rates in the 1990s.
The country’s birth rate has not recovered from the days of the Soviet Union, although the authorities offer generous aid and mortgage subsidies to large families.
Among the problems are the high number of deaths caused by Covid-19, the hundreds of thousands of men who have fled the country to avoid being mobilized to fight in Ukraine, and low migration to Russia, which in 2023 will reach a ten-year low.
Experts predict that by 2040, Russia’s population is likely to decrease to 130 million people.
Asked whether young families can still have faith in the future, the Kremlin pointed to similar demographics in other countries.
“Unfortunately, this is a trend,” said Peskov, quoted by BGNES.
“The situation will remain difficult for some time, but the government is working hard on this issue and it is one of the main priorities of the President of Russia,” he added.