Belstat has published recent figures on the reduction of the population of Belarus.
The population of Belarus as of January 1, 2024 was 9,155,978 people, such data is published by Belstat. Compared to January 1, 2023, there were 44,639 fewer residents in Belarus.
As of January 1, 2024, 1,992,862 people lived in Minsk — 2,609 fewer than at the beginning of last year, Belstat shows.
Of the regions of Belarus, the population decreased the most in the Vitebsk region (by 10,037 people), the least in Minsk (by 1,732 people).
According to Leu Lvouski, academic director of the “Beroc Research Center”, there is a trend in Belarus towards a decrease in residents and an aging population. In the following years, he predicts a further decline in the number of residents.
“These figures do not say anything qualitatively new. There is a general trend in Belarus towards population reduction and aging. This will be the case in a year and in two years, it is a long-term trend that is difficult to change. After 2020, such data is provided in a stripped-down form. The data does not fully show a decrease in the number of residents. They do not and cannot take into account emigration,” says Leu Lvouski to Radio Liberty.
Official data can take into account emigration only if a person applied to the official authorities of Belarus before leaving. So far, information about emigration is published only by the official authorities of the countries where Belarusians travel. Leu Lvouski puts the figure at 250-350 thousand people who left Belarus.