According to the first results of the Serbian 2022 census, released on Wednesday, Serbia's population was 6,690,887 in November, meaning that the country lost close 495,975 people since 2011 census, or close to 7 percent of its population a decade ago.

“The first results of the 2022 census include the data on the total number of enumerated persons, number of inhabitants, households, and dwellings, as of 30 September 2022. They are subject to change during the statistical processing of data. The final results of the census will be published in parts, in the period from April 2023 to June 2024,” said head of the state statistics bureau RZS, Miladin Kovacevic, adding that the census was not conducted in the territory of Kosovo and Metohija, the territory still considered by Serbian authorities as the country’s southern province.

Serbia’s population dropped by nearly half a million people (495,975) over the last ten years, or by 6.9 percent. All of Serbia’s regions recorded a drop in population, with the sole exception of the Belgrade region where population increased by about 1.6 percent, said the RZS.

As for cities, only three had more people living in them in 2022 compared to 2011 – Belgrade, which now has 1,685,563 people, Novi Sad with 367,121, and Novi Pazar with 107,859.

The census was carried out from 1 to 31 October 2022 nationally, and in some towns lasted until 7 November.