Reuters
Births in Italy dropped to a record low in 2023, the 15th consecutive annual decline, national statistics bureau ISTAT said on Friday, as the population continued to shrink. Italy's ever-falling birth rate is considered a national emergency, but despite successive governments pledging to make it a priority, none have so far been able to halt the drop. Last year Italy recorded 379,000 births, a 3.6% decline on 2022 and a 34.2% drop on 2008 -- the last year Italy saw an increase in the number of babies born.