Korça has a negative birth-death balance/ INSTAT report shows that in half of the counties, deaths exceed births

According to the population data, Albania sits between the hope of births and the harsh reality of demographic decline. The third quarter of 2025, based on INSTAT data, presents a mixed picture.

At the national level, there were 1,347 more births than deaths, but five counties continue to face a grim balance, where funerals exceed the number of newborns.

From Vlora and Berat, continuing with Shkodër, Gjirokastër, and Korçë, the natural population increase is negative, signaling a clear demographic alarm.

Korçë ranks first for a negative balance, with twice as many deaths as births specifically 487 deaths versus 271 births.

Following Korçë, Gjirokastër continues to lose residents, with only 81 births compared to 166 deaths, making it the county with the lowest fertility rate in the country.

In Dibër, the situation remains severe: 247 births versus 203 deaths, maintaining the long-standing trend of youth outmigration and population aging.

Shkodër and Lezha close the list of the five counties with negative population growth, where deaths surpass births, further weakening the demographic map of the north.

In contrast, seven other counties still maintain a positive balance, though at low rates, often insufficient to offset the losses in other areas.

The capital remains the only demographic engine of the country, with 2,509 births and 1,271 deaths a natural increase of 1,238 people, the highest in the territory. Tirana grows, livens up, and expands, while its administrative periphery follows a much slower pace.

Berat records the highest percentage increase in births, while Kukës registers the lowest number of deaths nationwide both indicators signaling a fragile but important stability.

As the numbers clearly show, Albania faces a silent challenge: the country is aging faster than it is growing.

“KORÇA BOOM”