Opendatabot data analysis found out that over the past two years, the number of abortions in Ukraine has decreased by 18%, reaching 45 thousand in 2023. This decline is larger than the average annual decline of 7%, likely due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and hostilities.
According to the Center for Public Health of the Ministry of Health, since 2011, the number of abortions in Ukraine has decreased by 3.6 times. The biggest decline was observed in 2020-2022, when the annual decrease reached 15%. Experts associate this with the pandemic and the beginning of hostilities on the territory of Ukraine.
It is noted that over the past 13 years, the number of abortions in Ukraine has significantly decreased – from 163,000 to 45,000 per year, that is, by 3.6 times. If in 2011 there were 330 abortions for every thousand newborns, now this figure is 250.
Most abortions (two thirds) occur among women aged 20 to 34. At the same time, minor girls under 17 make up 1% of the total number of abortions. In particular, 464 abortions among minors were registered last year, of which 29 cases involved girls under 14 years of age.
At the same time, data from the Ministry of Justice indicate a catastrophic drop in the birth rate. In 2023, the fewest number of children was born in Ukraine since independence – 184,985, which is 28% less than in the same period of 2021. The number of women who became mothers for the first time also decreased significantly.
“Let’s say, in order to have a simple restoration of generations, one woman should give birth to 2.13 – 2.15 children during her lifetime (on average). In 2021, we had an indicator of 1.1. In 2022, it will be even less, but the reduction will not be catastrophic due to the children born in the first half of the year. God forbid that we stop at 0.8 in 2023“, – emphasized the director of the Institute of Demography and Social Research named after M.V. Ptukha, academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Ella Libanova.
