Ukraine's Population Declines by 10 Million Since Russia’s Full-Scale Invasion, UN Reports

Ukraine’s population has dropped by 10 million, around a quarter of its total, since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, due to mass refugee displacement, plummeting birth rates, and war-related deaths.

This was stated by Florence Bauer, the Eastern Europe Head of the UN Population Fund, at a press conference in Geneva on October 22. 

"The birth rate plummeted and is currently at around one child per woman, which is one of the lowest in the world," she said. It takes a fertility rate of 2.1 children per woman to maintain a stable population.

In 2021, the year before Russia’s full-scale invasion, Ukraine had a population of approximately 41 million.

According to the Institute of Demography and Social Research, as of January 1, 2023, Ukraine’s population was estimated to be between 28 million and 34 million.

The largest portion of Ukraine’s population decline is attributed to the 6.7 million refugees now living abroad, primarily in Europe, with war-related deaths also contributing to the decrease.

Bauer noted that an accurate assessment of the war’s impact on Ukraine’s population will only be possible once the war is over.