Deaths in Greece outpaced the number of births in 2018 for the eighth consecutive year, according to data of the Hellenic Statistical Authority on Tuesday.
The population registered a net loss of 33,857 people from the previous year with 86,440 births (45,686 boys and 42,867 girls) compared to 120,297 deaths.
The year also registered the lowest number of births since records started in 1932, when 185,523 births were recorded.
The shift in Greece’s demography first began with the start of the economic crisis in 2011.
The two areas where births exceeded deaths were the southern Aegean islands and Crete.
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Experts warn that by 2050, Greece’s population will have dropped between 800,000 people, and possibly even 2.5 million people.
In an effort to shift the trend, the New Democracy government has vowed to grant a 2,000-euro benefit for every child born in the country as of 2020.
Greece’s infant mortality rate last year stood at 3.47 per 1,000 live births, as a total of 300 infants died before reaching the age of one year. The rate rose slightly compared to 2017.
The figures showed that one in seven (14.3 per cent) babies born in Greece in 2018 had a mother who was a citizen of another country, while the vast majority (91.2 per cent) were born to couples who were married or had signed a cohabitation pact.
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