EU population will drop by 32 million by 2100, says Eurostat

EU population will drop by 32 million by 2100, says Eurostat
Credit: Belga

By the end of the century, the EU's population will drop by nearly 32 million, according to the latest forecast from the European statistics office, Eurostat, released on Thursday. Belgium, on the other hand, is expected to see the number of its residents increase.

At the beginning of 2023, the Union had a population of 451.4 million, says Eurostat. This was almost five million more than a year earlier, due to a “massive influx of Ukrainian refugees” into the EU after Russia invaded their country. Some “recovery” was also seen after the rise in mortality during the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021.

Eurostat forecasts that the number of people in the EU will grow for a few more years, peaking at 453 million in 2026. The population will then decrease, dropping to just 420 million by 2100, about 7% less than today.

While there will be fewer people, they will also be older. The over-80s could account for 15% of the total population by the end of the century, compared with 6% in 2023.

Belgium does not follow the European average since, according to Eurostat, its population will be 12.5 million by then, compared with 11.7 million today, an increase of 7%.


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