Argentina’s birth rate hits lowest level in 50 years

Statistics from Argentina’s Ministry of Health show that the country’s birth rate reached its lowest level in 50 years in 2023, with just 460,902 births recorded that year.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Argentina had 460,902 births in 2023 — 7% less than 2022.

• The birth rate is now just 1.4 births per woman — far below the 2.1 replacement rate.

• Abortions in the country continue to rise, with 107,000 preborn children killed in 2023.

THE DETAILS

These numbers reflect the continuation of a downward trend; 2023’s birth rate is a 7% decrease from 2022, and a whopping 41% drop since 2014.

According to UPI, a report from the Austral University of Argentina states that the number of births is now 1.4 per woman, which is well below the replacement rate of 2.1 per woman. On average, women in the country aren’t having their first child until 30-34 years of age, and 57% of households do not have an occupant under age 18.

Argentina’s president, Javier Milei, has reportedly attributed the country’s population decline in part to its legalization of abortion in 2020. Abortion is legal in the country through 14 weeks of pregnancy for any reason, and after 14 weeks in cases of rape or risk to the mother’s health. Per the demographic statistics, “voluntary and legal interruptions of pregnancy (IVE/ILE)” — abortions — increased from 73,000 in 2021 to more than 107,000 in 2023 — an increase of nearly 47% in just two years.

THE OTHER SIDE:

According to one researcher, the latest numbers simply reflect a decrease in “unwanted” pregnancies — a development he sees as nothing to worry about.

“The decline continues to be faster among adolescents (10 percent for 2023) with a cumulative decline of 66 percent when compared to the numbers of a decade ago (2014),” said CIPPEC researcher Dr. Rafael Rofman. “And these tend to be almost always unwanted pregnancies which make life difficult for women who are studying or beginning to work. Avoiding them is pure gain for them and society.”

With the rise in abortion numbers, it is likely that at least some of these “unwanted pregnancies” are being aborted. Killing preborn children simply because they are unwanted, or so that their mothers can work is never a gain for a society, but is a tragedy.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

Experts warn that declining population numbers can have long term catastrophic impact on a nation’s economy and well-being. But any country that legally allows the killing of its future citizens in the womb cannot be surprised when it starts to suffer long-term negative ramifications.