TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of the Interior announced on Monday that Taiwan recorded 10,407 newborns in February.

The figure increased by 912 from January. As of February, Taiwan's population was 23,384,614, a decrease of 11,435 from the previous month, for the 14th consecutive month, per CNA.

Taoyuan had the highest population growth rate at 0.92%, followed by Hsinchu County at 0.91% and Taichung at 0.52%. Meanwhile, Taipei experienced the largest population decline at minus 1.18%, with Kinmen and Chiayi following at minus 1.17% and minus 1.16%, respectively.

As of February, the population aged 0 to 14 totaled 2,733,872, accounting for 11.69% of the total population. The population aged 15 to 64 reached 16,126,419, making up 68.96%, while those aged 65 and above totaled 4,524,323, representing 19.35%.

In February, 123,992 people relocated to new cities or counties in Taiwan, up by 52,497 from January, while 123,946 people moved out, an increase of 53,803 from the previous month. Taichung had the highest number of relocations with 2,640 people, followed by Taoyuan with 2,389 and New Taipei with 2,217.

Taiwan recorded 21,888 deaths in February, an increase of 6,870 compared to January. The average time between deaths was approximately 1.9 minutes.

The National Development Council predicts that Taiwan's total population is set to fall below 23 million by 2030. By 2039, the proportion of the population aged 65 and older is expected to exceed 30%.

The council added that Taiwan faces severe issues of low birthrates and an aging population. By 2070, the total population is projected to be around 14.97 million.

Taiwan had 134,856 newborns last year, a decrease of 715 from 2023. The total population was 23,402,220, a decrease of 22,022 from 2023, returning to negative growth after a brief positive period in 2023.