findings include the persistence of traditional norms for childbearing and the roles of men and women, concerns about medical complications and infertility at a later age, and the link between early fertility and early marriage. Ukraine subsequently has one of the oldest populations in the world, with the average age of 40.8 years. To help mitigate the declining population, the government continues to increase child support payments. Thus it provides one-time payments of 12,250 hryvnias for the first child, 25,000 hryvnias for the second and 50,000 hryvnias for the third and fourth, along with monthly payments of 154 hryvnias per child. The demographic trend is showing signs of improvement, as the birth rate has been steadily growing since 2001. Net population growth over the first nine months of 2007 was registered in five provinces of the country (out of 24), and population shrinkage was showing signs of stabilising nationwide. In 2007 the highest birth rates were in the western oblasts. In 2008, Ukraine emerged from lowest-low fertility, and the upward trend has continued to 2012, while the population was still decreasing but at a pace that was slowing year to year. If early 2010s trends were continuing, the population of Ukraine could have returned to positive growth later in the same decade. Similar trends were seen in Russia and Belarus as well, which experienced population growth in the 2010s. In 2014 the strong decline in births was re-established, with 2018 having fewer than half the number of births as in 1989. (see demographic tables) In 2020 the number of births decreased to 293,000, reaching levels not seen even in the late 90s and early 2000s when the number of births started to increase. According to the 2021 interview with Ukrainian professor Iryna Kurylo from M.V. Ptukha Institute for Demography and Social Studies, Ukraine's total fertility rate is 1.20 children per woman making it the lowest in Europe. Population Life expectancy total population: 71.37 years male: 66.34 years female: 76.22 years (2013 official) Average life expectancy at age 0 of the total population. Total fertility rate 6.00 children born/woman (1913 est.) 5.39 children born/woman (1925 est.) 1.08 children born/woman (2001) 1.46 children born/woman (2011) 1.53 children born/woman (2012) 1.21 children born/woman (2018) In 2001 Ukraine recorded the lowest fertility rate ever recorded in Europe for an independent country: 1.08 child/woman. During this year the number of children born was less than