Deaths exceed births in Busan for first time in decades

Elementary schools in the port city of Busan have already started to suffer from a shortage of new students. gettyimagesbank

By Jung Min-ho

The number of deaths in Busan last year exceeded births for the first time in decades.

According to Statistics Korea's data released on Sunday, 22,600 people died in the country's second-largest city while 19,100 were born.

Only 20 years ago, there were three times more births than deaths.

A shortage of students because of the falling birth rate is already affecting schools.

Kamjung Elementary School, which was founded in southern Busan in 1980, closed early this month after holding its last graduation ceremony on Feb. 20. Another elementary school in western Busan, Deokdo, shut down the same month.

Data from the Korean Education Development Institute show that the number of students at elementary, middle and high schools in Busan has declined in recent years and this year, for the first time, will likely fall below the number of students in Incheon, Korea's third-largest city.