Gender breakdown in Russia is a serious problem the government has been trying to cope with for years. It’s not a surprise that women live longer than men. However, in Russia, the gender gap is out of the ordinary.

The demographic situation in Russia has never been easy and it got even worse after the 20th century wars the country went through. The shortage of men had a dramatic influence on the women to men ratio in the post-war times.

More than 70 years have passed since the end of WWII but the number of women still prevails, which is bad for society, scientists say.

The roots of the problem lay in relatively low living standards (in big cities like Moscow and St. Petersburg life is much better and close to the European level), heavy drinking, smoking, and some social norms like a tendency to “solve” problems by physical force. Some Russian guys believe that this is a good way to demonstrate their masculinity and courage.

Considering longevity, today’s statistics look more positive than it was in 1990s. Russians started to live longer and the youngster generation tends to drink less.

What is going to happen in about 10 years? Will the number of guys grow to make life in the country more peaceful? Let’s have a look what the official statistics reveal.

Gender breakdown in Russia

The number of boys born every year outnumbers the number of girls. However, due to various factors, at the age of 34-35 males start to outnumber females. Life expectancy of Russian women is about 75 years while men are expected to live to the age of 64. High mortality among men causes gender imbalance.

There are 86 men for 100 women in Russia in the total population, or about 11 million more women than men.

This is the reason why lots of ladies from the countries of the former USSR look for men abroad.

To have a broader look at the future perspectives we can compare the data accumulated by demographers and open to the public on GKS.ru.

1995 gender statistics

In 1995, 736 thousand boys and 700 thousand girls were born. The number of males among the people aged from 0-35 was higher. After that age, the gender gap was widening. For instance, there were 646,000 males and 1 million females at the age of 66.

People aged 49-52 were in minorities. They were born during the war and a year after it.

On the whole, most of the population was younger than 50.

2000 male to female ratios

In 2000 the population size was decreasing together with the share of newborns. Only 627 thousand boys and 593 thousand girls were born.

The gender imbalance was outstanding. The number of men older than 60 was decreasing at the rapid speed. And there were only 84,000 men and 280,000 women aged 80 (120,000 and 433,000 in 1995).

2010 men to women statistics

After 2000 the population started to grow slowly. The number of newborns was higher than in 2000 and people were living longer. The share of people in their 80s doubled: 500,000 females to 185,000 males. The gender imbalance remained high.

But it should be noticed that the share of children aged from 9 to 17 was lower than in 2000.

2015 data on gender balance

In 2015 the share of children, especially from the age of 8 to 15, was low. The major part of people was aged 24-65. The share of females prevailed, especially after the age of 70 (766,159 women to 364,569 men).

Prediction for 2020

In 2020, the number of newborns is expected to decline. The population is obviously aging. The most part of the population will be from 28 to 60. The number of the young in their 20s will be low due to birth rates in 2000.

2031 projections

It would be great to say that in 2031 women to men ratio will be more harmonious. But it will not. The society will be still female dominated.

The demographic problems will continue to trouble the Russian government in 2031 as well, according to the projections. The officials keep thinking of ways to avoid further decline, for example, by paying women who have 2 kids before the age of 30.

The good news is that life expectancy in Russia is predicted to increase. There will be 728,619 men and 1,109,673 women aged 70, which is much higher than in 2000 (491,067 men and 859,870 women). But at the same time, the population will be aging reflecting the birth rates in 2000-2008.

Infographics: Gks.ru

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