People wearing face masks walk past the Trocadero Place near the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, Oct. 23, 2020.(Photo: Xinhua)

The population of France is set to grow slowly but steadily until 2044, when an aging demographic will prompt a decline if current fertility and immigration rates hold, the country's national statistics office said Monday.

That would see the current population of 67.4 million rise to a peak of 69.3 million before reversing, the INSEE agency said in delivering forecasts for the next 50 years.

The forecast assumes a continued fertility rate of around 1.8 births per woman, already one of the highest in the EU. It also foresees new arrivals compensating for a projected decline in births starting in 2035.

The new forecasts could figure prominently as France gears up for a presidential election in spring 2022, with right-wing candidates in particular promising to crack down on immigration.

France and other Western nations have seen a steady erosion of fertility rates over the past decade as fewer women have children and families have gotten smaller.

For years the government has tried to encourage births by offering family allowances and heavily subsidized child care, while also providing bigger tax breaks for larger families.

But its fertility rate remains below 2.1, the threshold experts say is needed to maintain population levels.

INSEE said that if the rate increased to 2, France would have 4.1 million more people by 2070 compared with its central forecast.

An "inevitable" development by 2040, however, will be "a continued aging of the population," the agency said.

AFP