Rural Population of Southern Russian Regions: Peculiarities of Age Structure

Abstract

The current attention towards the problems of rural communities results from a number of negative trends as follows: the rural population decline, increase in the share of poor households, high migration. So, it is urgent to study the demographic potential of rural communities. The article considers peculiarities of the age structure of populations of Astrakhan Oblast, Volgograd Oblast and the Republic of Kalmykia. According to statistical data, over half of Kalmykia’s residents live in rural areas, in Astrakhan Oblast the share is a little over a third, and in Volgograd Oblast - less than a quarter of the region’s population. The analysis of age structure of Astrakhan and Volgograd Oblasts’ populations shows that the share of children and adults aged 36 to 59 is higher than that in urban populations, while the share of young and elderly people is lower. The age structure of Kalmykia’s rural population is characterized by features as follows: the share of children, young and elderly people in rural areas is lower than that within urban communities, and the share of adults aged 36 to 59 is higher. A comparative analysis of demographic indices from the three regions testifies that, in terms of age structure, there is a small share children and a large share of elderly people in Volgograd Oblast. Thus, from this perspective, Volgograd Oblast has a most unfavorable demographic structure. Further consideration of data from the three regions of Southern Russia helps us conclude that there are certain peculiarities in the age structure of rural populations. Special attention should be given to attracting the youth to villages for the development of rural territories and improvement of the demographic situation.