News
Birth rate declined again in 2023
The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) says the number of births declined again last year, but the island's overall population still rose due to a carryover effect from the coronavirus pandemic.
Data shows that 135,571 people were born in Taiwan in 2023 and the ministry says that figure represents a crude birth rate of 5.82 births per 1,000 people, down from 5.96 in 2022.
Meanwhile, last year's deaths exceeded 200,000 for the second time in recorded history, totalling 205,368. That figure was down 0.9% from the number of deaths recorded in 2022 and represented a crude death rate of 7.9. According to the interior ministry, the difference in births and deaths resulted in a natural population decrease of 69,797 people.
However, the population rose by 155,802, to stand at 23,420,442 in 2023. That increase is being attributed in large part by what the government is calling "net immigration," which reflects distortions created during the pandemic.
