The number of newborn children in Slovenia dropped to 16,800 last year, which is 5% fewer than the year before and the lowest number since this data started to be recorded in 1922, preliminary data from the national Statistics Office (SURS) shows.

The most important reason for the drop in births in recent years is a decline in the number of women of childbearing age, that is between 15 and 49 years old. Their number fell by 18% in between 2000 and 2022, SURS official Martin Bajželj told reporters on 14 February.

"Previously, lower fertility rates (births per woman) also had an impact. The last time the fertility rate was 2.1, which is necessary for natural population replacement, was in 1980. From 1980 to 2000, the rate dropped to 1.2, but it has risen again slightly over the last 20 years, to somewhere between 1.5 and 1.6," Bajželj explained.

The proportion of women who have not given birth has declined over the last 70 years. The proportion of women who have given birth to at least four children has also decreased; it has been at below 5% in recent years, compared with 28% around 70 years ago.

Negative natural increase, postive migration

The number of deaths decreased by 5% to 21,400 last year, while the rate of natural increase, which has been continuously negative since 2017, was negative in all months of the year for the first time ever.

Despite the negative rate of natural increase, Slovenia's population has been increasing thanks to the positive net migration. On 1 October last year, Slovenia had a population of roughly 2.123 million, or 6,000 more than at the beginning of that year.

"With increased immigration in recent years, the proportion of foreign nationals in Slovenia has also increased, to 9.4% according to the latest data. Among men, the share is 12%, and among women it is 7%," Bajželj said.

Slovenia has seen the number of foreign citizens double since 2014, in a trend similar to that in other EU countries. The highest percentage of foreigners is among men aged 20 to 39, at 20%.

"As a result of the increased immigration of young working-age men from abroad, we had more men than women in Slovenia's population for the first time in the second half of 2019," the official said, adding that this was quite a rarity.

Like in the rest of Europe, Slovenia's population is ageing rapidly. The median age of the EU's population is 44.4 years, which compares to 44.7 years in Slovenia. In both cases, the median age has increased by six years since 2001.

The share of minors in the population has been decreasing, and currently stands at 18% in Slovenia and the EU as a whole. Meanwhile, the proportion of the population aged 65 and over has been increasing, with 21% of the population aged 65 and over, according to the latest data.

The old-age dependency ratio, defined as the number of individuals aged 65 and over per 100 people of working age, is currently at 34 and is expected to reach 59 by 2100.