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China’s population growth slowed over the last decade, new government data shows, as the country faces a shrinking workforce.

Over the past 10 years, China’s population increased by 72 million to 1.411 billion, the National Bureau of Statistics announced after a once-a-decade census.

School children wearing masks cross a busy traffic intersection in Beijing.
School children wearing masks cross a busy traffic intersection in Beijing.
AP

But annual growth averaged 0.53 percent, a decrease of .04 percent from the previous decade.

The working population in China — people aged 15 to 59 — is declining after reaching a peak of 925 million in 2011.

A medical staff member takes care of a newborn babies in the paediatric ward of a hospital in Fuyang, China.
A medical staff member takes care of a newborn babies in the paediatric ward of a hospital in Fuyang, China.
AFP via Getty Images

According to new figures, the country’s workforce population is now three-quarters of the amount of its 2011 high.

“We are more concerned about the fast decline in the working-age population,” said Lu Jiehua, a professor of population studies at Peking University.

A woman wearing a face mask pushes an elderly man on a wheelchair in Beijing.
A woman wearing a face mask pushes an elderly man on a wheelchair in Beijing.
AP

“If the population gets too old, it will be impossible to solve the problem through immigration,” said Lu. “It needs to be dealt with at an early stage.”

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