Czech Republic population rises to 10.68 million, largely due to immigration

Prague, Dec 12 (CTK) – The population of the Czech Republic rose by 31,400 to 10.68 million in the first nine months of 2019, and the growth was mainly caused by foreign immigration, according to the preliminary data that the Czech Statistical Office (CSU) released today.

Ukrainians were the biggest group of foreign immigrants.

The birth rate was higher than mortality. However, both the number of births and deaths dropped year-on-year.

“In the first three quarters of this year, more than 85,000 children were born. But compared to the same period of 2018, it was almost 2,000 fewer. The number of babies born to both married and single women decreased year-on-year,” said Michaela Nemeckova, from the CSU demographic statistics section.

The number of babies born out of wedlock was 3 percent lower compared to the same period last year, and the number of those born to married couples dropped by 2 percent.

The number of deaths decreased by 1,500 year-on-year to 83,700, while men prevailed among them. They died at the age of 72.8 years on average. The average death age of women was seven years higher.

The population of the Czech Republic rose by 29,900 by the end of September thanks to people moving to the country. It was about 2,200 more year-on-year.

A total of 49,200 people moved to the Czech Republic from abroad and 19,300 left the country. Ukrainiains dominated both groups, followed by Slovaks, Romanians and Russians.

The number of marriages concluded in the first nine months of 2019 decreased compared to 2018. A total of 47,100 couples got married between January and September 2019, while last year, it was 1,650 more.

The number of divorces has remained more or less the same, about 17,600.