In Uzbekistan, the birth rate and the number of marriages have been declining for the third year in a row, while divorces are rising

Demographic indicators have been declining for the third year in a row

The National Statistics Committee has published data for January–September 2026, which shows that the country's key demographic indicators continue to decline. This is reported by Daryo.uz citing materials from the committee. In the first three quarters, 638.6 thousand babies were born in Uzbekistan — 26 thousand (3.9%) fewer than in the same period of 2025 and 55.3 thousand (about 8%) fewer than in January–September 2024. According to the committee, in 2023, 716.9 thousand children were born over nine months, and the figure has been declining for three consecutive years since then.

Fewer marriages, more divorces

The number of marriages is shrinking in parallel with the birth rate: over nine months of 2026, 172 thousand marriages were registered, compared with 177 thousand a year earlier and 179.4 thousand in 2024. According to the outlet, the number of marriages has been steadily declining since 2021. Divorces, meanwhile, are rising: over the three quarters of this year, 36.8 thousand marriages were dissolved (35.4 thousand in 2025 and 34 thousand in 2024). A notable spike occurred in January–September 2021, when the number of divorces jumped by 9 thousand at once — to 29 thousand — after which the figure has consistently exceeded 30 thousand. Most divorces this year (21.9 thousand, or 59.5%) were registered in cities. Of those born in 2026, 51.6% were boys and 48.4% girls; 51.4% of newborns were born in rural areas.

The population is growing more slowly than before

As of October 1, 2026, the permanent population exceeded 39 million 535 thousand people, an increase of 1.8% compared with the same period of 2025. The growth rate is gradually slowing: it was 2.1% in 2024 and 1.9% in 2025. The largest number of residents is in the Samarkand (4.4 million) and Fergana (4.3 million) regions, the smallest in the Syrdarya region (965.4 thousand). The results of the population and agricultural census should also be taken into account separately, which was conducted from January 15 to February 28, 2026: it showed that the actual population exceeds the permanent registration figures by 810.6 thousand people. As of January 15, 2026, the population was 39 million 47 thousand people — since then it has grown by almost half a million.