The declining birth rate: a challenge for the future.

Recovering the birth rate requires a broader approach, which includes improving economic conditions, housing, and support services aligned with families’ personal and cultural circumstances.

In recent decades, the number of births in Matanzas has steadily declined, from almost 8,000 per year to just over 4,000 in 2024. Experts on the subject explain that migration, primarily of women of childbearing age, plays a role, but assert that the economic situation is the main cause of delays or decisions not to have children.

Starting a new family involves facing logistical and material difficulties, reinforced by the lack of adequate housing and the high cost of basic goods, factors that discourage young couples from having children. According to the National Statistics Office (ONEI), the birth rate in Cuba has been less than two children per woman since 1978, a level insufficient to maintain the population.

Furthermore, selective migration, especially of women between 20 and 35, further reduces the reproductive base, which is reflected in a demographic imbalance: fewer births and more older adults. Similarly, in the province, women are more educated and independent, which leads to delayed childbearing and better family planning.