A new census has revealed that Armenia’s population has fallen below 3 million people.

The country’s Statistical Committee said in late April that as of October 2022, the “permanent population” of Armenia was around 2.93 million people – a nearly 3% decline from the last census in 2011 and an almost 9% drop since 2001, Civilnet reports.

Armenia’s “current population,” calculated separately, came in even lower, at about 2.64 million people.

The Armenian government defines the permanent population to include people with permanent residency in Armenia, even if they have lived outside of Armenia for up to the last year. In contrast, the current population counts all people who were in Armenia on the day the census was conducted, even if they do not have permanent residency.

The figures stand in stark contrast to the Armenian government’s demographic goals, with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan pledging in 2020 to raise the country’s population to at least 5 million people within 30 years.