Population in CEE shrinking faster than EU average

The natural change of population has been negative in the region since mid-1990 (meaning more people died than was born in particular year) while in the whole EU it became negative only in early 2010. In the region the slowdown in births began to be quite apparent after economic transformation. The other very significant moment in natural change of population is COVID-19 pandemic. The CEE region has suffered to a greater extent as its population decreased by -0.6% in 2021 due to a very high number of excessive deaths. While demographic development is not favorable in the long-term, according to Eurostat, the EUs population has increased to 449.2 million people on 1 January 2024, after a decline in 2020 and 2021 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The negative natural change (more deaths than births) was outnumbered by the positive net migration, mostly due to the influx of displaced persons from Ukraine who received temporary protection status in EU countries, as a consequence of the Russian aggression.