Astana, 29 October. The number of newborns in Kazakhstan fell over three years from 388,400 to 335,000, or by 16%, while maternal mortality dropped by 75% over five years, the Ministry of Health said in reply to a request from BES.media.
Births among teenagers are also falling: according to the ministry, they have dropped by 45% over five years.
The decline is continuing in 2026. In the first quarter, according to the Bureau of National Statistics, 74,100 children were born – compared with more than 100,000 in the first quarter of 2021. The crude birth rate fell from 15.39 per thousand residents at the start of 2025 to 14.58 in 2026. The most children are born in Turkestan and Mangystau regions and in Shymkent.
What it means: Kazakhstan, long known for a high birth rate, has recorded fewer births for a fourth year running; at the same time, medicine has become safer for mothers.
Background: In the first quarter of 2025 the number of births fell by almost 16% year on year and dropped below 90,000 per quarter for the first time since 2014. Finratings analysts link the decline to young families postponing children because of the cost of housing, medical care and education, and warn of a future labour shortage and a growing burden on the budget.
