World's Fastest-Shrinking Countries

Bloomberg

No. 23 Estonia

2010 Population: 1,340,000
Forecast 2050 Population: 1,227,000
Percent Decrease: 8.4 percent
2010 Population over age 65: 17 percent
Fertility Rate: 1.6
Net Migration Rate: 0

Estonia's fertility rate dropped to 1.28 in 1998, then gradually rebounded to last year's 1.6, according to Statistics Estonia. In 2009, however, the number of live births decreased for the first time during the last eight years. This may be due in part to economic problems: Following the bursting of the real estate market bubble and a slowdown in investment, Estonia's gross domestic product decreased nearly 15 percent in 2009, one of the biggest drops worldwide, according to the CIA World Factbook. The low birth rate, coupled with a lack of inward migration, is expected to shrink the population.

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