Greece faces demographic decline as birth rates drop

Greece is experiencing a significant demographic shift characterized by a sharp decline in birth rates and a rising average age of motherhood. Research conducted by Byron Kotzamanis, a former professor of Demography at the University of Thessaly and director of the Institute of Demographic Research and Studies (IDEM), reveals that annual births have dropped from an average of 148,000 during the 1979-1980 period to approximately 67,000 in 2024-2025.

The average age for women to have children has increased by nearly six years, rising from 26.2 to 32.2 years. The fertility rate has also seen a substantial decrease, falling from 2,200 births per 1,000 women in 1979-1980 to 1,240 in 2024-2025. This trend is attributed to a decline in intergenerational fertility; women born in the late 1950s had an average of 2.0 children, whereas those born around 1985 have fewer than 1.5.

Since 2010, Greece's natural population balance has remained negative, with deaths outnumbering births. In the last five-year period between 2021 and 2025, there were 290,000 more deaths than births. The decline is further compounded by a shrinking population of women in the 25-44 age bracket, which has decreased by approximately 28% (nearly 480,000 women).