Moldova has a total fertility rate of about 1.55 children born to each woman, which is below the replacement rate of 2.1. Moldova currently has a flat population growth rate of 0.0%. Since the breakup of the Soviet Union, Moldova has struggled with healthcare issues, and it now has one of the highest rates of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in the world. Emigration is also a big problem in Moldova that is impacting growth, the economy and demographics. It is estimated that 600,000 to 1 million citizens (or 25% of the population) works abroad.
Moldova Population Growth
People have been steadily leaving Moldova the early 1990s when disputes with Russia began. The birth rate in Moldova is also less than the worldwide average with just 1.24 children being born to the average woman. The low birth rate has been attributed to a change in mindset where the people of Moldova don't want to bring children into the economic situation currently in the country. The combination of these factors has kept the population dwindling, however slowly, for the past few decades. As of 2019, the population was changing at the rate of -0.28% annually.
Moldova Population Projections
The trend in declining population is expected to continue in the years to come, with current projections stating that by the year 2050 the population will be changing at -0.87% annually. If this proves to be true, the number of people in Moldova will decline nearly one million in this period. These predictions say that the population of Moldova will be roughly 4,017,687 in 2020, 3,843,941 in 2030, 3,583,993 by 2040, and 3,293,157 by 2050.