Armenia's population continues ageing
By Rashid Shirinov
The population of Armenia is ageing, says the report “The Demographic Handbook of Armenia, 2017,” published by Armenia’s National Statistical Service (NSS) on December 24.
One of the main problems associated with the demographic situation is the population ageing, the process of which was greatly accelerated in Armenia during the post-Soviet period, the report says.
In accordance with the United Nations’ scale of population ageing, if the share of the population aged 65 and over exceeds 7 percent of a country’s population, then this country has the ageing population. This indicator made 11.2 percent in Armenia at the beginning of 2017, according to the new report by NSS.
Thus, Armenia by more than 4 percent crosses the threshold United Nations set for the ageing population. The new statistics shows that this problem remains actual in Armenia and it is further deteriorating, since the population at the age of 65 and over comprised 11 percent in the beginning of 2016.
The main reasons for the population ageing are, of course, the low birth rate and emigration factor. This year showed the lowest birth rate in Armenia in the last five years, and this process is explained by the fact that people in the country cannot afford to have children due to all the social and economic problems they face.
Emigration is the major problem of Armenia’s demographics. As much as 14,300 people left the country during the past year, according to the NSS, and in the last five years the number of permanent residents of Armenia decreased by 302,400.
Estimations say that if the current trends of births, deaths, and leaving the country continue, Armenia’s population will decrease by 860,000, thus becoming about 2.14 million by 2040.
It is noteworthy that the vast majority of those who emigrate from Armenia are young and mature people. The main reason for their leaving is the terrible unemployment, which plagues the whole country. In this regard, people have to find a way to feed their families, and therefore, they leave their old parents in Armenia and go to other countries for work, mainly to Russia. This, in turn, raises the share of elderly in Armenia’s population.
The problem of population ageing can be fought through opening many new jobs and fixing Armenia’s half-ruined economy. However, since the Armenian government has not yet achieved success in this, the ageing of population will probably continue to gain a foothold in the coming years.
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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov
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