depopulation

Based on the urban–rural typology, predominantly rural regions accounted for almost half (45%) of the EU’s area in 2021. However, according to population data on 1 January 2021, only 21% of the EU population lived in rural regions. Over the period 2015-2020, the population of predominantly rural regions fell, on average, 0.1% each year, while almost no change was recorded in the population of intermediate regions. On the other hand, the population of predominantly urban regions rose, on average, 0.4% each year.