The fact that the new generations do not want to have children or form smaller families than a few years ago continues to take its toll on the population statistics in the country, given that there are fewer and fewer births and Although deaths are still fewer, they have recovered the upward trend.
This can be seen in the recent Dane figures on births and deaths in Colombia, ending in October, in which a drastic drop in the number of live births is reported, since in this period of 2024, there are only 371,777 cases registered, while deaths are at 227,641.
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Although there are still more births than deaths in the country, we must not overlook that 10 years ago, for the January-October period, there were 669,137 live births recorded and only 210,051 deaths.
This means that while in 2014 there were three births for each death, currently this ratio is only 1.6 to 1, respectively, which means that the country is replenishing its population, but it is not increasing over time or does so very little, at the rate at which it is being observing.
Births.
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On the other hand, according to Dane, in 2023, “the volume of births in the country reports an annual drop of -10.1%, reaching the lowest value in the last decade with 515,549 births, 153,588 births less than in 2014.”
Likewise, they reported that so far in 2024 (preliminary data), the number of births falls even further, with a decrease compared to the same period of the previous year of -14.4%. These reductions have occurred in a sustained manner, showing a higher rate of decline since 2022.
“By department of residence of the mother, in 2023, the annual drop in births is widespread. The departments of Guainía (-40.7%), Vaupés (-20.0%), Amazonas (-17.8%), Vichada (-16.5%) and Cesar (-15.6%) are those that They report the largest reductions compared to the year 2022,” they added.
The data also revealed that despite the annual decline evidenced In 2023, departments such as Guainía, Vaupés and Vichada, these departments, together with La Guajira and Guaviare, are the only ones in which an increase in the volume of births is observed compared to 2014.
This, explained the statistical authority, may be associated with “the substantial improvements that the country has had during the last decade in the capture and registration of vital events in these territories,” which currently allow a better analysis of population changes in these regions. separated.
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“In 2023 and for the second consecutive year, March is the month of the year with the highest number of births in Colombia, with a total of 45,529. In 2023 and so far in 2024, September is once again positioned as one of the months with the most births in the country, ranking second in both periods, in 2023 preceded by March and so far in 2024 by August,” they noted.
A fact that is worth highlighting in these accounts is that during 2024, no month exceeds the threshold of 40,000 births and June of this same year is the month that records the lowest number of births in the 2019 – 2024 series. in the country, with a total of 34,705 live births.
“In 2023, the total contribution of births to mothers residing and who immigrate from Venezuela, remains at similar levels to 2019 with 5.9%. However, in 2023 there is a reduction in the percentage of mothers residing in Venezuela and this has continued so far in 2024, going from representing 1.8% in 2019 to 0.6% in 2023 and So far in 2024, 0.5% of the total births that occur in Colombia,” says the report.
Population
Héctor Fabio Zamora / Portfolio
Mortality increases
Another of the fronts addressed by the National Administrative Department of Statistics in the report was the mortality rate, a point in which it maintained that the country registered a total of 268,411 non-fetal deaths last year, maintaining the slightly increasing trend that was presented until in 2019, while the mortality rate also increased slightly.
Meanwhile, so far in 2024, 227,641 deaths have been reported, which represents an increase of 1.6% compared to the same period of the previous year.
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“The distribution of deaths by sex shows a constant behavior, with a predominance of deaths in men, with a rate that has increased from 5.2 deaths per 1,000 men in 2014, to 5.8 in 2023, while The mortality rate in women has increased from 4.0 deaths in 2014 to 4.5 in 2023,” Dane reported.
According to the department of residence, when comparing mortality rates From 2014 to 2023, Cundinamarca, Arauca and Amazonas, show a decrease, while in the other departments the mortality rate increases. The highest mortality rates in 2023 are reported in the departments of Quindío with 7.7, Risaralda with 7.0, Tolima 6.6 and Caldas with 6.4 deaths per 1,000 inhabitants.
Deaths.
When reviewing the causes of death, the majority of cases are associated with ischemic heart diseases, which represent 16.9% of deaths. In second and third place are cerebrovascular diseases and chronic diseases of the lower respiratory tract with 6.2% and 6.1% respectively, followed, in fourth place, by homicides with 5.0%. .
Dane closed by saying that “when compared with the year 2023, these causes occupy the same positions with very close percentages, while, in 2014, l“Homicides were the third cause of death.”
