The EC has launched its EU demography atlas.

On 29 April 2021, the EC launched its digital EU demography atlas, which is an interactive tool for monitoring and anticipating demographic changes within the EU. The atlas was developed by the EC’s joint research centre (JRC).

Information about its use as a reference work is dealt with here: the EU demography atlas aims to provide quick and easy access to a wide range of demographic data and knowledge. It provides users with clear information from a combination of official statistics and forecasts from Eurostat and new data from the JRC with high spatial resolution. The contributions about demographic trends are linked to various policy areas. The EU atlas concept also provides for adaptations and extensions to meet the needs of the various policy areas.  

User group

The EU demography atlas is publicly available to a wide range of users. The EU atlas will provide the EC with the option to use the information to develop and improve policies. It is intended to support activities in various policy areas such as health, employment and education. However, the EC does not envisage that its use will be limited to EU institutions. Instead, it could also be used, for example, in the teaching of school classes.

Demographic changes

The EU demographic atlas aims to provide knowledge about the development and impact of demographic changes within the Member States. The information can be broken down by region. The starting point for developing the EU atlas was the increasing ageing of societies and the decline in the working-age population in the coming years. Shifts are taking place as a result of the mobility of young Europeans. This can have very different effects on cities and rural regions in the EU.

Effect on political initiatives

The EC has been researching the impact of demographic changes within the EU for some time. Last year it published its initial report on this subject. This EU demographic atlas is another tool for the EC to respond to the negative impact of demographic change on the economy and social cohesion. The information will also feed into the EC's decision-making processes regarding the EU’s “Rights of the Child” strategy and the Green Paper on Ageing (see report 4/2021).