QCOSTARICA – Currently, in Costa Rica there are 15 births per 1,000 inhabitants, while two decades ago, the number of births was 24 . That is a drop of 9 births per 1,000 inhabitants compared to 20 years ago.
The decline was confirmed by the Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas y Censos (INEC) – national census and statistics institute – after analyzing the results of the 2013-2014 demographics.
Between 1994 and 2014, the results show a different population structure. Twenty years ago about half of the population was under 25 years of age, while today it is 27.7%.
Relevant, says the report published November 20, 2015, is the increasing percentage of the population over 65, which means that the country must prepare for a rapidly aging population.
Another fact revealed by the analysis is that 20 years ago, the average number of marriages per thousand inhabitants was six, while currently it is five.
In absolute terms the number of deaths over the period increased, but not a significant change. The main cause of death are acute myocardial infarction and malignant stomach tumor; however, its incidence appears to have decreased since, in 1994, 14% of deaths were due to these two causes, while in 2014, that percentage dropped to 10%.
Source: INEC
