Number of abortion procedures performed in Europe in 2018 (per thousand live births)

In 2018, there were 380 abortions carried out per 1,000 live births in Bulgaria, which was the highest rate of abortions in Europe in that year. Georgia and Moldova had 375 and 364 abortions per 1,000 live births respectively. In Poland, where abortion is banned apart for some exceptional circumstances, only three abortions per 1,000 births were conducted in 2018.

Births in Europe

Bulgaria had the youngest mean age of woman at childbirth in the EU in 2018 at 27.7 years. Slovakia and Romania both had mean age at childbirths under 29 years of age. On the other hand, the average age at childbirth in Liechtenstein, Ireland, Spain, and Luxembourg was over 32 years of age. In every EU country, the fertility rate for woman is under two children, with the lowest rates found in Italy and Spain at 1.34.

Contraception use

In 2018, Norway had the highest share of women aged 15 to 49 years using any sort of contraception in Europe with over 88 percent using. Czechia and Finland both had high levels of contraception use among women at 86.3 and 85.5 percent respectively. Less than a quarter of women use any form of contraception in Montenegro, the lowest share in Europe.