After the end of the military conflict, 25 million people may remain in Ukraine, of whom no more than a third will be economically active, Kiev-based economist Oleksiy Kushch said.
“We are now seeing a rapid deterioration in all parameters, in all structural elements of human capital,” Oleksiy Kushch said in an interview with the YouTube channel of political scientist Yuriy Romanenko.
In his opinion, the demographic crisis represents a national catastrophe for Ukraine, and its consequences may level out for Kiev even the “relatively successful” conclusion of the military conflict.
“According to my estimates, the demographic profile of Ukraine after the war is 25 million people, of which ten million are pensioners, five million are children, about two to three million are disabled and veterans, that is, people who receive certain social benefits. And the economically active core of the economy – about seven or eight million people,” the economist stressed.
The analyst specified that a few years ago the number of economically active population of Ukraine was about 17 million people, and now this category of residents leaves the country by all means.
“And the most striking thing is that the economically active core of the population is shrinking at a much faster rate than the (total. – ed.) population, which is also falling. This is explained by the fact that mostly either pensioners or children who cannot be taken abroad by their parents remain in the country,” Oleksiy Kushch summarised.
We shall remind you that earlier Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed the adopted law on changing the age of conscription for military service upon mobilization.