Kazakhstan’s birth rate lower down in 2023

During the 12-month period, Kazakhstan has witnessed the birth of 388.4 thousand children, a decrease from 403.8 thousand in 2022, reports Kazinform News Agency correspondent citing the Bureau of National Statistics.

Of these newborns, 51.6% were boys and 48.4% were girls. Out of the total number of births, 230.3 thousand (59%) were born in urban areas, while 158 thousand (41%) took place in rural regions.

Total fertility rate (TFR) in 2023 consisted of 19.52 per 1,000 people. In 2022, it was 20.57 births per 1,000 people. The highest birth rates were recorded in Mangistau (26.74 per 1000 people), Turkistan (26.18) regions and the city of Shymkent (25.70).

The main share of births occurred among women aged 25–29 years and amounts to 29%, and among women aged 30-34 years (26%). Women under the age of 20 gave birth to 12.6 thousand children last year, and women over 50 gave birth to 96 children. At the same time, the average age of the mother was 29.7 years.

TFR, which measures the average number of children born on average to one woman during her reproductive years (15–49 years), recorded a value of 2.96 in 2023 for the republic, down from 3.55 in 2022. In urban areas, the TFR decreased to 2.63 in 2023 from 2.76 in the previous year. Meanwhile, in rural regions, the TFR remained unchanged at 3.59.

Among the countries regions, Turkistan recorded the highest level of TFR at 4.39, followed by Mangistau at 3.99, while North Kazakhstan had the lowest TFR at 1.82.

As for birth order, 23% of children were born second in their families, totaling 90.7 thousand. More than 1.000 children were the eighth child in their family.

Over the same period, 4,075 twins were born, slightly higher number from 4,063 in 2022. Also, there were 48 triplets, down from 50 in the previous year, and 1 set of quadruplets.