GENEVA, October 22. /TASS/. The population of Ukraine has shrunk by more than 10 million since February 24, 2022, Florence Bauer, the Regional Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said at a news briefing in Geneva.

"The Ukraine population has declined by over 10 million," she said describing this as a substantial decline in human capital, a key element of the future restoration of Ukraine.

Bauer highlighted how the humanitarian crisis and political turbulence affected the demographic situation in the country. While prior to the escalation Ukraine already had one of the lowest birth rates in Europe and large numbers of people have left in search of more opportunities, the situation got much worse since the beginning of Russia’s special military operation.

"The birth rate fell to just around one child per woman, and that’s one of the lowest in the world," Bauer continued. Also, as many as 6.7 million people have fled the country, she said.