Meanwhile, a recent report by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka has also reported a 0.6 per cent drop in the population of Sri Lanka, from 22.2 million in 2022 to 22 million in 2023.
Ever since 2020, There has been a significant drop in the annual birth rate in Sri Lanka since 2020, Senior Deputy Registrar General, Lakshika Ganepola said on Monday.
She said that in the meanwhile, annual deaths have increased.
Ganepola said annual births were around 325,000 before 2020, but they have now decreased to around 280,000 in 2023. On the other hand, annual deaths have increased to around 180,000, while the number was around 140,000 before 2020.
The official said this imbalance between the annual birth and death rates could negatively impact the population of Sri Lanka.
Meanwhile, a recent report by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka has also reported a 0.6 per cent drop in the population of Sri Lanka, from 22.2 million in 2022 to 22 million in 2023.
As per the report, the annual birth rate which was reported at 1.93 per cent in 2007 has dropped to 1.12 per cent in 2023, while the annual death rate which was at 0.59 per cent in 2007 has increased to 0.82 per cent in 2023.
Parliamentarians have recently highlighted the imbalance between Sri Lanka’s birth and death rates, pointing out that younger people leaving the country was a key contributing factor. Addressing the media, MP Gammanpila said that Sri Lanka will face a situation of more senior citizens compared to younger citizens in the future unless action is taken to retain the younger generation to prevent the impacts of the imbalance.
