South Koreans will be extinct by 2750 if they stop having more babies, a study has found.
The country, which according to the Time is ‘threatened with extinction by the world’s first self-inflicted genocide’ recorded another sharp decline in birth rates last year, with the average woman having an average of 0.72 offspring in her lifetime.
Now demographers are concerned that South Koreans will not see the end of the millennium if the downward trend, which has been going on for decades, continues at this rate.
Last year’s figure of 0.72 is the lowest since measurements began 54 years ago.
South Korea currently has 52 million inhabitants.
Last year, 230,000 babies were born, compared to 249,000 in 2022. This represents a decrease of 7.7 percent.
The number of annual deaths is also declining, but the decline is not nearly significant enough to balance population levels.
South Korea currently has 52 million inhabitants, but the number is declining. Last year, 230,000 babies were born, compared to 249,000 in 2022. This represents a decrease of 7.7 percent.
The number of deaths decreased by 5.4 percent compared to 2022 to 352,721, which means a population decrease of 122,721.
This was the fourth year in a row that there have been more deaths than births in the country.
To balance the numbers, South Korean women would need to have an average of 2.1 babies over their lifetime – three times the current level.
If the pattern does not change, the future of the country’s residents looks bleak.
Demographers have predicted that even with a birth rate of 1.19, much higher than current levels, the country will see a decline of 12 million people in 32 years.
This means that more than 1,000 people will disappear from the population every day.
By 2136, the numbers look even more worrying. Projections show that there will be only 10 million people left in the country at this point. This is barely more than the current population of the capital Seoul.
As numbers decline, the rate at which the population decreases becomes slower. This can be visualized by halving large numbers repeatedly. If you halve a million you lose 500,000, but if you halve the 500,000 you only lose 250,000. Population decline will slow, but will continue –
And by 2750, demographers predict, the very last South Korean will die if things don’t change.
Of course, other factors could change the projections, such as immigration, which is growing worldwide, and lifespans, which are increasing.
South Korea isn’t the only country facing the prospect of underpopulation, despite being significantly worse than the majority of the rest of the world.
Nine in ten countries will face the threat of ‘underpopulation’ by the end of the century, scientists warn.
A report shows that by 2100, 93 percent of countries will not have enough children to replace those who die, leaving too few young people to work, pay taxes and care for the elderly.
The International Federation of Fertility Societies (IFFS) warned that the global fertility rate – the number of children born per woman – is falling dramatically.
In 2022, when South Korea was at a relatively better level of 1.39, the US was at 1.89 and the UK at 1.87.
Not every country is at risk of a declining population.
The population is growing rapidly in many countries in Africa.
For example, Niger had an average birth rate of 6.86 in 2022 – almost ten times South Korea’s rate in 2023.
There are several reasons why South Koreans are having fewer children than before.
Demographers warn that if South Koreans don’t have more babies, they will become extinct
First, the costs of education and childcare are more expensive than before.
There is also a cultural idea in the country that women should stay at home and take care of the children, while the men go to work to earn the money. Women are not as comfortable with this as they were in the twentieth century.
The South Korean government is desperate to break the trend and keep the country populated in the future.
According to the Times, they have spent tens of billions over the past seventeen years trying to promote reproduction and get people to have more children.
They even offer women a million won (£640) per month, per child, in benefits.