Population Decline-Russia

Question 1

Why is there decline?

Answer 1

1) High death rate
- Life expectancy is 69 in males
- poor healthcare
- more than 1 million have AIDS
- alcohol consumption and high alcohol related deaths
- 2/3 of Russian men die drunk
2) Low birth rate
- educated women do not want children
- fertility rate is 1.1
- 13 abortion to every 10 children
3) Emigration (moving away from Russia)
- USSR dissolved December 1991 (lifting of restrictions on borders)
- emigration in 1990s was 175 million

Question 2

What are the problems?

Answer 2

1) Not enough taxes paid to support services
2) Innovation and development decline (labour shortage was 16 million in 2014
3) Goods imported disrupts the balance (imports worth 250 billion dollars)
4) Resources are wasted due to surplus
5) Danger to national security
6) Higher dependency ration =pressure on working population
7) There is a gender imbalance

Question 3

Solutions

Answer 3

1) Birth rate
- free kindergarden, cheaper housing, cash support
- those who have children receive 250000 roubles
- from oil profits they have dedicated 500 roubles to child support
2) Immigration
- immigration policies are simplifying
- new policy on January 2007
- Now 180 000 migrants visit the country each year