New analysis from University of Thessaly It provides for the continuation of the reduction and aging of the population of Greece over the next three decades. The phenomenon of healing It is not only demographic, but it is directly linked to a number of social problems, such as the escape of young people and the problem of housing.
In the analysis of the Demographic and Social Analysis Laboratory of the University of Thessaly, entitled “” Demographic “and Birth in Greece today: Demographic inactivity and social challenges”, Assistant Professor Iphigenia Kokkalis points out the Birthplace. In 2023, births reached 72.3 thousand, a number corresponding to about half of the average of 1951-1970.
Our country today records one of the lowest fertility indicators in the European Union, with 1.3 to 1.4 children per woman, a size far from the population breeding limit (2.07 children per woman).
‘Gray Greece’: population reduction and aging
According to survey data, the population of Greece has been reduced by almost 500 thousand people Between 2011 and 2024. This reduction is consistently due to negative natural balances (less births than deaths) and negative immigration balances.
At the same time, Greece is one of the most aging countries In Europe, with almost 23% of its residents being over 65 years old. In 2023, citizens of over 65 were almost 1 million more than young people 0-14, while one in five generations of 1980 chooses homelessness.
The analysis reminds that the population decline began in 2011, after the end of the massive influx of foreigners that had been observed in the past decades and had contributed to the increase in genitality and to slow down the aging of the population.
Why do young people leave the country or postpone family creation?
Research focuses on the basic reasons that contribute to the demographic problem, in addition to pure statistics:
- Search for work and meritocracy: The flight of young Greeks and Greeks is not only due to the financial crisis, but mainly to the search for decent work with prospects, satisfactory gain and good conditions. Lack of meritocracy in the country is one of the main factors that push them to expatriate.
- The housing: The mortgage Problem is a major obstacle to a family. The difficulty in finding a roof affects the age of withdrawing from the family home, delaying the first coexistence and, by extension, childbirth.
In conclusion, Greece’s demographic problem is a complex social challenge that requires immediate interventions in both the economic field and the treatment of chronic pathogens, in order to motivate young people to stay and create a family in the country.
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