Birth Rate Reaches New Low
Only 6,872 births were registered in Estonia during the first half of the year, reaching the lowest point since 2006, which is when Statistics Estonia began monitoring monthly data.
Compared to the first half of last year, there were 354 fewer births, reported Delfi.
The decrease in births wasn't seen in all of Estonia's counties, however; in the first five months of the year, Jõgeva, Järva, Põlva, Pärnu, Rapla, Viljandi and Võru counties had an increase in births compared to last year.
In the first half of the year, the number of deaths surpassed births by over 1,000. Overall, the death rate has been slowing, with the figure for the first half of the year declining by 1,305 in six years.
Robin Ilves