St. Petersburg news

14.05 17:59

Birth rate in St. Petersburg is among the lowest in Russia

The number of people who prefer de facto marriages has recently increased in St. Petersburg. According to ABN, this is shown by the annual report prepared by the Governor for the Legislative Council “Situation of Young People in St. Petersburg”. An opinion poll conducted among students showed that 73% of the young people prefer an officially registered marriage, while 22% would prefer de facto marriage and 2.2% would prefer to live alone.

93.5% of the students believe that premarital sex is permissible, and 43% believe that premarital sex is necessary. The number of divorces grows. More than 50% of newly married couples believe that their marriage may result in a divorce. The number of illegitimate children has been growing dramatically: about 30% of children born in St. Petersburg are illegitimate. Most single mothers are girls younger than 20, some of them are minor. Twenty per cent of young people want to have one child, 64% - two children, 11% - three and more children, while 3% do not want to have children at all. Yet birth rate in St. Petersburg is among the lowest in Russia, although the number of abortions has decreased. Unmarried women mention the following reasons for abortion: fear of giving birth to a disabled child (48%), low income (42%), poor health (38%), poor living conditions (36%), the child being conceived in the state of alcoholic intoxication or the absence of a permanent partner (34%), being uncertain about the future (25%).

There is a strong trend towards feminization of families. In every fifth family, the woman is in control of everything, while 70% of young families advocate equal rights and cooperation between husband and wife. An average young family has one or two children and has financial problems and poor living conditions.