Italy's demographic crisis deepened in 2024 as the number of births hit a new record low, emigration accelerated and the population continued to shrink, national statistics bureau ISTAT said on Monday.
Italy's ever-falling birth rate is considered a national emergency, but despite Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and her predecessors pledging to make it a priority, none have so far been able to halt the drop.
There were about 281,000 more deaths than births in 2024 and the population fell by 37,000 to 58.93-million, continuing a decade-long trend.
Since 2014, Italy's population has shrunk by almost 1.9-million, more than the inhabitants of Milan, its second-largest city, or of the region of Calabria in the country's southern toe.
The 370,000 babies born in 2024 marked the 16th consecutive annual decline and was the lowest figure since the country's unification in 1861.
It was down 2.6% from 2023, ISTAT said, and 35.8% lower than in 2008 — the last year Italy saw an increase in the number of babies born.
The fertility rate, measuring the average number of children born to each woman of child-bearing age, also fell to a record low of 1.18, far below the 2.1 needed for a steady population.