Ukraine records lowest birth rate in history due to war - Zelenska

As noted on the website of the President of Ukraine, she announced this during an online speech at the international summit "GROWING EUROPE 2025. Shaping the Demographic Future of Europe through Investment in Families and Every New Life,“ held in Vilnius on November 17–18, Ukrinform reports.

”According to UN forecasts, women around the world will give birth less and less. By the end of the century, most families will have only one child. In European Union countries, the birth rate is only 1.5. In Ukraine, due to the Russian invasion, this figure is the lowest in history – about 0.8–0.9 according to various estimates. The feeling of security has the greatest influence on the decision to give new life," said Zelenska.

She also noted that there has been an increase in premature births in Ukraine due to the stress of war that mothers are experiencing. “My colleagues at the Summit [first ladies and gentlemen] remember well how, at the beginning of the invasion, we had to import incubators for such babies on a massive scale,” said the first lady.

She noted that Ukraine is trying to counter demographic challenges with social care for children and families, as this is also part of the country's defense.

"Among the projects I sponsor are support for large foster families, the construction of bomb shelters for schools, and the renovation of food service facilities and dining rooms. And right now, Ukraine is joining the European Child Guarantee, a European program that provides children with access to free education and care, medical assistance, adequate housing, and nutrition," Zelenska added.

The President's wife also thanked European countries for protecting and supporting Ukrainian children and mothers.

As reported by Ukrinform, in the first six months of 2025, 86,800 babies were born in Ukraine, while the number of deaths during the same period reached 249,000.

Photo: OP