According to the data of the National Bureau of Statistics (UIB), the population of mainland China was 1 billion 412 million 600 thousand in 2021, while it was determined as 1 billion 411 million 800 thousand in 2022.
The country’s population declined for the first time since years of drought and famine in the early 1960s, when the Communist administration attempted to collectivize agriculture. The death of 30 million people at that time led to a decline in the country’s population in 1960 and 1961.
Birth rate at lowest level since 1949
The birth rate fell to 6.77 per thousand in 2022, the lowest level since national records began to be kept in 1949. While 9.56 million babies were born in the country in 2022, the number of births decreased by 9.8 percent compared to the previous year.
While the death rate was 7.37 per thousand, the population growth rate fell to minus 0.6 percent.
Experts assess that the slowdown in economic growth in recent years, the increase in child-rearing and living costs, and the strict control measures implemented in the last 3 years due to the Kovid-19 outbreak triggered a decrease in the population.
In China, where the population growth rate has decreased since 2016, the government abandoned the “one child” policy implemented since the 1980s, first increasing the childbearing limit to 2 in 2016, and then enacting the law change allowing families to have 3 children in 2021. had accepted.
THE POPULATION OF INDIA IS ESTIMATED TO LEAD CHINA THIS YEAR
As the Chinese population tends to decline, India is predicted to overtake China as “the world’s most populated country”.
In the “World Population Prospects 2022” report published by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, it was predicted that the population of China would enter an “absolute decline process” as of the beginning of 2023, while the population of India would continue to increase, leaving China behind as the most populous country in the world.
In the report, it was stated that the population of China is estimated to decrease to 1 billion 317 million in 2050 and to 766 million by the end of the century.
It is predicted that the decrease in the population growth rate to negative will lead to a decrease in the workforce potential of China in the future together with the aging population, and its effects on the economy will be felt.
(AA)