The exodus is more evident in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), and the negative natural increase has been constant over the last ten years. The main reason for the decrease in the number of newborns is the poor socio-economic situation, due to which the population is migrating en masse.
Negative trend
The Agency for Statistics of BiH stated that the data on the natural movement of the population for the first quarter of this year have not been published yet, so journalists took the last two years for comparison.
Compared to 2020, in 2021, 124 fewer babies were born. The negative trend, which is also expressed, is the increased number of deaths, so in 2021 we have 22.633 more deaths than births, while in 2020 the difference was 16.809.
Demographer Aleksandar Majic told that the basic problems for our country are the reduced number of fertile contingents and the increased number of deaths, but also that we are threatened with extinction if nothing is done to improve the situation.
”We constantly have a smaller number of fertile women, ie. women who can give birth. The biggest problem for BiH is mortality, we have more and more elderly people and that is why the negative natural increase is increasing. In the next 10-15 years, we can expect an increase in the number of deaths,” Majic emphasized.
Start families abroad
In search of a “better tomorrow”, an increasing number of young people decide to leave BiH and start families abroad.
”Most people emigrate in their twenties and thirties, they are people in the full labor force and the most fertile contingent of the population, people who bring reproduction, ie. children, and contribute to the workforce. We see that in some sectors of the economy there is a shortage of labor, and this is the reason for that,” noted Majic.
Gloomy situation
He explains that this area has always had emigrations, but that in the past this could be compensated by high birth rates and natural increases.
”Now, since we have a negative natural increase and a large outflow of population, we have both natural and mechanical depopulation. The situation is gloomy, if these trends continue, we will see the extinction of the population,” concluded Majic, Avaz writes.
E.Dz.
