More boys than girls were born in Moldova last year

The birth rate in Moldova has decreased slightly. As many as 40,462 children were born last year, by 341 fewer that in 2009. 51.3% of them were boys, the ratio of boys to girls being 105:100, Info-Prim Neo reports, quoting the National Bureau of Statistics. The birth rate in rural areas was higher than in urban areas – 11.2 per 1,000 people in villages and 10.2 per 1,000 people in towns. The perinatal mortality rate (stillbirths and early neonatal deaths) in 2010 increased slightly. It was 11.4 per 1,000 newborns, as against 11.3 in 2009. The infant mortality rate (deaths of children under one year) fell to 8.9 children per 1,000 newborns, as opposed to 10.5 a year before. 22.4% of the 40,462 children were born outside marriage, down 3.2% on 2009. The average age of the mothers at the first delivery was 23.5. 9.4% of the newborns were born my mothers younger than 20, in contrast to 9.9% in 2009. In 2006, this figure was 13%.