NSI: Bulgaria’s Population Melted by Another 34,934 People in 2020

By 31 December 2020 the population of Bulgaria is 6,916,548 people, the National Statistical Institute (NSI) reported. Compared to 2019, the population of the country decreased by 34,934 people, or by 0.5 percent.

Males constitute 48.4 percent of the population - 3,349,715 and females number3,566,833 (51.6 per cent), or per 1,000 men there are 1,065 women. The males prevail in the age group below 54 years. As the age increases, the number and relative share of women in the total population of the country grows.

Overall, the NSI acknowledges that the process of population decline and ageing continues in the country; the number of live births and the overall fertility rate reduce; the number of deceased and the overall mortality rate are on the rise; infant mortality rate lowers as well as the number of marriages concluded and the number of divorces.

At the end of 2020, people aged 65 and over are 1,504,048, or 21.8 percent of the country's population. Compared to 2019, the share of the population within this age bracket increased by 0.2 percentage points. The ageing process is more pronounced among women than among men. Regionally, the proportion of people aged 65 and over is the highest in the districts of Vidin (30 per cent), Gabrovo (29.1 per cent) and Kyustendil (27.7 per cent). In total in twenty regions of Bulgaria, this share is above the national average. The lowest is the share of the adult population in the districts of Sofia (capital) -17.7 percent, and Varna -19.4 percent.

As of 31 December, 2020, children under 15 in the country are 999,014, or 14.4 percent of the total population, and since 2019 this share remains unchanged. The relative share of the population under 15 years is highest in the districts of Sliven -18.5...