KIEV, December 27. /TASS/. A dramatic fall in the birth rate is expected in Ukraine next year and it is quite possible that the country’s population may decrease to 35 million or less by 2030, Ella Libanova, Academician of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences and director of the Ptukha Institute for Demography and Social Studies, said on Tuesday.
"2023 will be the year of a catastrophic fall in the birth rate. To sustain the current population level, a woman must give birth to an average of 2.13-2.15 kids. In 2021, this index was 1.1 and even less in 2022, but still the decrease will not be catastrophic thanks to the children born in the first half of the year. God willing, we will stop at 0.8 in 2023," Ukrinform quoted her as saying.
According to Libanova, Ukraine’s population may shrink to 35 million or even less by 2030. "It is my hope that we will have 35 million people by 2030. Regrettably, it may not turn out that way," he said.
The agency quoted statistics of the Institute for Demography and Social Studies showing that Ukraine’s population has been decreasing since 1994. Now it stands at around 34-35 million people. According to UN data, more than 7.8 million Ukrainian refugees have relocated to European countries since February 24.