The number of births in Korea increased for the first time in nearly a decade

The Korean Ministry of Internal Affairs today announced that the country will record 242,334 newborns born in 2024, an increase of nearly 7,300 children compared to 2023, marking the first increase since 2015.

South Korea recorded 360,757 deaths in 2024, causing the total population to decrease for the fifth consecutive year. South Korea’s population is currently 51.2 million people.

Although the population is decreasing, the increase in the number of children born every year is expected to be a sign of improving the country’s birth rate.

South Korea has the lowest birth rate in the world, at 0.72 in 2023, much lower than the recommended level of 2.1 to ensure a stable population. This has led to predictions that Korea could halve its population by the end of the 21st century. Officials have declared a national emergency, considering this a top risk to the economy and society.

The Korean government has implemented a series of measures to deal with the decline in birth rates, from expanding financial support for childbirth, child care services to increasing benefits for couples with multiple children. One of the notable policies implemented this year is to increase the child care leave salary cap to 2.5 million won ($1,700) a month, compared to 1.5 million won previously.

Although rising births provide a glimmer of improvement in population decline, Korean society continues to age. The average age of Koreans in 2024 is 45.3 years old, up from 44.8 in 2023.

In December 2024, the Korean government announced that this country had become a super-aged society, meaning more than 20% of the population was over 65 years old. The Korean Statistics Bureau predicts that the average age of the country’s people will exceed 50 years old in 2035 and 55 years old in 2049.