During the past couple of years, people have started to pay more attention to demography. The reason is probably the 2001 census. The results of this census were published in late 2003. The people didn’t really care about the results due to the fact that they were so late. Besides that, some experts were suspicious about the results and stated that Armenia’s population covers 3 million. Later, the national statistics service finally published a demographic book with updated information. Based on this book, the demographic fall of our country has stopped. According to the official statistic information, this process, which started in 1992 stopped in 2002. And starting from 2002 Armenia’s population is growing, slowly yet surely. The lowest birth rate was registered in 2001: 30.065 children. The most recent published information is the information of 2004: 37.520 children. But demographers and specialists are still not sure that the demographic fall has eventually stopped for sure. Besides the well known social and economical processes, some other processes have started too. These processes will have their negative influence on our demographic situation for a long time. There is a new age in demography and the medium age rate in Armenia has continued to fall during the years. There is a decrease in the number of mother over the age of 30. On the basis of this information demographers assume that there are not too many multi-member families. Accordingly, on the basis of this, we may assume that our state does not implement any serious policy to fight against this tendency. Anyone can see the public approach to families with many children that have many children in our city in transports too. You can see the following table in almost all transport means, “Children under 6 are free of fee, for two children one ticket price is to be paid”. This announcement may be taken as a real approach of our society and state to families having many children. As a result of this approach the demographic difference between village and city families has disappeared. Now the birth marks both in villages and cities are almost the same. Before, village families used to have more children. The reason was the fact that they had bigger houses, better conditions for children, etc. Now, things have turned around due to poverty. According to demographers, besides the significance of the average age growth, the number of older mothers having their first child has grown too. On the one hand, this may be accepted as a result of the change in the level of civilization. In developed countries the average age of mothers having their first child is high. The reason is the fact that, in those countries people start families after reaching a certain civil status. We can’t say the same about Armenia because the average age of couples that get married is not so high. We have started having fewer babies like they do. Usually children are very important in Armenian families and are always in the center of attention. We may assume that this approach has changed due to the state/public awareness. Demographic researches show that after the rapid demographic fall of Armenia in the 20th century, Armenia doesn’t have a tendency for demographic growth in the 21st century.
In closing, I’d like to draw a figure. During the Soviet period we were the first country in the Union with the highest mark of national core population – 93%. Now this mark is 97,8%.