Comparative Analysis of Dynamics, Trends and Forecasts of Demographic Processes in Volga Federal District and Nizhny Novgorod Region

It is evident that demographic potential is one of the most essential factors in a battle for world economic dominance. On the opposite, a demographic crisis threatens the further existence of a state and a demographic policy is an inalienable condition of saving the population and its vitality. For the first time since 1991, in the Russian Federation in 2013-2015 the birth rate exceeded the death rate and Russia committed to the path of a “demographic spring”. But the same is not true for all Russian regions. Thereby, the main testable hypothesis of this research is that unlike Russia, the Volga Federal District and the Nizhny Novgorod Region have not yet overcome the demographic crisis. The main research questions are as follows: Is the “demographic spring” possible to come after the current “demographic winter” in the Volga Federal District and the Nizhny Novgorod Region? This research provides both an up-to-date analysis of the demographic situation in the Russian Federation and the comparative analysis of the demographic processes in the Volga Federal District and the Nizhny Novgorod Region, detecting the primary socio-economic reasons and consequences of the current depopulation. At the end of the investigation the projections for the Volga Federal District and the Nizhny Novgorod Region population were made and furthermore a detailed understanding of how to improve the demographic policy and to overcome the present Russian demographic crisis was offered.