The urbanization experience of countries across Eastern Europe and Central Asia is profoundly affected by demographic transition over the last 25 years. By 1990, about 68% of the population in the region lived in urban areas.
Having experienced more than two decades of fertility rates below replacement levels, and currently suffering from negative net-migration rates, many countries in the region are experiencing an overall decline of their population. Compared to the rest of the world, countries in the region have much lower population growth rates, and are among the only countries experiencing both a decline of their total population and of their urban population.