The UN stated that Ukraine’s population has decreased by approximately 10 million people

Since February 24, 2022, Ukraine’s population has decreased by nearly ten million people.

This statement was made by Florence Bauer, the Regional Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia of the United Nations Population Fund.

“A significant portion of these people have left the country. The population is aging, and the youth are seeking opportunities elsewhere and leaving the country,” she said during a briefing in Geneva.

Bauer noted that Ukraine’s birth rate was already low before the war, and now it has become one of the lowest in the world—around 1.0 child per woman. To sustain population levels, a rate of 2.1 is needed.

Earlier, Ella Libanova, Director of the Institute of Demography and Social Studies, presented an even lower figure—less than 1 child per woman. According to her, even the “miraculous” return of people who left the country would not be enough to reverse the situation. The demographer pointed out that Ukraine is currently experiencing a deep demographic crisis.

Libanova also told that Ukrainian employers are increasingly targeting men over 60 years old for jobs because they are exempt from military mobilization.

The Ukrainian government predicts that by 2051, the population of Ukraine will shrink to 25.2 million people.