Demographic problems in Russia

The PBS News Hour reports on the Russian problem with declining population demographics.  The current Russian birthrate is 1.4 births per woman in 2010.  This is below the 2.1 birthrate needed to sustain the population.  Unfortunately the country also has a higher than normal death rate for individuals age 20-45.  This has largely been attributed to a high rate of alcoholism which accounts for 600,000 premature deaths per year.

It will be interesting to note how Russian society deals with these two issues.  There have been some positive trends lately in life expectancy and birth rate.   Unfortunately the current path is still unsustainable.  One demographer described it as a European birth rate with an African death rate.  It is a problem that can not be solved by traditional engineering but will require a change in Russian culture and society.

This is a link to a graph of recent Russian Federation population trends.

Prediction of population trends from: http://www.russiablog.org/2009/01/russias_superpower_strategy_ru.php

Update Nov. 17, 2011:  In addition to a decline in birth rate the LA Times reports an increase in emigration from Russia.  Roughly 1.5 million Russians have left the country in the past ten years.  The reasons for leaving have been economic and for some political.  Unfortunately for Russia, many of the individuals are well educated, with skills similar to the Russian physicist who now works in Japan.  Some emigrants have returned after finding economic conditions no better outside of Russia but the general trend is clear with 100,000 plus people leaving each year.  A recent survey found that nearly 40% of 18 to 35 year old Russians are considering leaving the country.