Changing demographics
Photo: AFP
By 2030 Arabs will account for one out of every four citizens of Israel,
according to a forecast published by Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) on Tuesday.
The forecast featured three possible scenarios - high, medium, and low – based on different variables that may affect population growth such as death rate, immigration, and fertility. According to the low alternative, in 2030 Israel's population will be 9.6 million, and according to the high alternative – 10.6 million. The forecast was based on population estimates from late 2005.
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According to CBS, the population's ageing process in Israel will intensify, and the relative portion of elderly citizens over age 65 is foreseen to constitute 14%, or 1.4 million people, as opposed to 10% in 2005, according to the middle alternative.
In contrast, the relative portion of 0-14 year-old citizens is expected to decrease from 28% to 25%, though their numbers should increase from two million to 2.5 million.
According to the forecast, the Jewish population is expected to comprise 7.2 million people, up from from the 5.3 million counted in 2005. However, in terms of overall percentage this number represents 4% decrease.
Meanwhile, the Arab population is expected to number 2.4 million people in 2030, an increase from 1.4 million in 2005.