Demographic crisis: death rate in Ukraine is three times higher than birth rate

5 August 12:32

In the first half of 2024, 250,972 people died in Ukraine and 87,655 children were born, which is 9% less than in the same period last year. This is evidenced by data from the Opendatabot service, Komersant ukrainskyi reports

According to these figures, the birth rate this year has decreased by one and a half times compared to the period before the full-scale invasion: 87,655 children against 132,595 in 2021.

Year2018201920202021202220232024
Birth rate164 287149 549139 134132 595106 43096 75587 655
Number of newborns in Ukraine

The highest number of newborns and deaths in Ukraine was recorded in Dnipropetrovska oblast and Kyiv.

Kyiv registered the highest number of newborns – 9,695 babies, followed by Lviv – 7,923 and Dnipropetrovs’k – 6,962.

The lowest number of children was born in the frontline regions – 221 in Kherson and 702 in Donetsk.

In Luhansk region, not a single baby has been registered in six months.

Currently, there are three deaths for every newborn citizen. According to analysts, this ratio is one of the key indicators of the demographic crisis.

“For comparison, in the pre-crisis years of 2018-2020, there were two deaths per child. 250,972 people died in Ukraine in the first six months of 2024. This is 1.4 times less than in the same period in 2021, when 349,041 deaths were recorded. However, it is worth noting that 2021 was the peak year for deaths due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Opendatabot states.

Year2018201920202021202220232024
Mortality rate298 017304 330287 010349 041291 071258 055250 972
Number of deaths in Ukraine

The highest number of deaths was recorded in Dnipropetrovska and Kharkivska oblasts and in Kyiv.

The lowest number was recorded in the frontline Kherson and Donetsk regions, as well as in Chernivtsi region.

According to the Institute of Demography and Quality of Life Problems of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, the population of Ukraine may decline to 25.2 million by 2051.

It is reported that as of August 2023, the population of Ukraine has already decreased to 36.3 million people. Of these, only 31.5 million people lived in the territory controlled by the Ukrainian government.

Analysts said that due to the full-scale war with Russia, the average life expectancy in Ukraine has decreased. Thus, in 2020, this figure for men was 66.4 years, and in 2023 it was already 57.3 years. As for women, in 2020, the average life expectancy for Ukrainian women was 76.2 years, and in 2023, the figure dropped to 70.9 years.

According to analysts, if the situation continues to develop in the same direction, the population of Ukraine may decrease to 28.9 million by 2041, and to 25.2 million by 2051.

Остафійчук Ярослав
Editor