The number of births in Albania has declined rapidly, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic, but in the northern regions, the decline was twice the national average.<\/p>\n
Official data from the Institute of Statistics (INSTAT) show that in the first 9 months of 2023, a total of 16,353 babies were born, which is 20% less than the same period in 2019. However, in the Dibra and Kuk\u00ebs regions, the number of births decreased by 37% each.<\/p>\n
In the Dibra region, only 597 babies were born in the first 9 months of 2023, compared to 831 in the same period in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic. In the Kuk\u00ebs region, only 499 babies were born, compared to 787 born in 2019.<\/p>\n
After Kuk\u00ebs and Dibra, the decline was most pronounced for the Kor\u00e7a and Elbasan regions, each with a decrease of 31% and 30%, respectively.<\/p>\n
All regions experienced a double-digit decline in births, including the capital, which saw an 11% decrease in births during the same comparison period. Although the population of Tirana has been increasing year after year, the number of births has suffered a significant decline.<\/p>\n
In the northern regions, the decline in births is driven by migration factors. In recent years, Dibra and Kuk\u00ebs have been affected by a strong wave of migration of young people to the United Kingdom. While in the Kor\u00e7a region, the decline in births is influenced by the aging population, as the region has experienced an earlier wave of emigration.<\/p>\n
Year after year, women of reproductive age plan to have fewer and fewer children. Postponing the age of marriage, pursuing a career, and changing lifestyle habits are making Albanian women less inclined to create families and have more than one child.<\/p>\n
INSTAT data show that during the year 2022, the fertility rate fell to 1.21 children per woman of reproductive age, down from 1.32 in 2021. This is the sharpest decline since then.<\/p>\n
This means that out of 100 women of reproductive age, only 121 children are born, down from 132 born in 2021. From 2001 to 2023, the fertility rate has halved, dropping from 2.31 children per woman to 1.21 children.<\/p>\n
Compared to Eurostat data from 2021, Albania is seen to have the lowest fertility rates in Europe, surpassed only by Spain (1.19) and Malta (1.13).<\/p>\n
The fertility index is below the replacement rate of 2.1 children per woman, meaning that a couple cannot replace themselves.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The number of births in Albania has declined rapidly, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic, but in the northern regions, the decline was twice the national average. Official data from the Institute of Statistics (INSTAT) show that in the first 9 months of 2023, a total of 16,353 babies were born, which is 20% less than […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":63232,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[153],"tags":[270,2648,423,5376,550,243,151,1141,4923,747,667,5335],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n