The process of urbanization has continued in Belarus, told the head of the department of demographic statistics of the National Statistics Committee Ruslan Vrubleusky. The urban population in the country is increasing: the total number of citizens is 7 million 275 thousand people and it increased by 53.8 thousand people in 2013. Today three-quarters of the Belarus population are townsmen.

The greatest increase in the number of residents was noted in Minsk: its population increased by 20.7 thousand people last year. Significant increase was observed in the regional centers and such cities as Pinsk, Navapolatsk, Babruisk, where population increased by 500 people or more.

68 % of the urban population is concentrated in large cities with population of 100 thousand and more. These cities are Minsk and such regional centers as Babruisk, Baranavichy, Barysau, Pinsk, Orsha, Mozyr, Navapolatsk, Saligorsk.

But the rural population is declining. It decreased by 49.5 thousand people, including natural decrease of 22.5 thousand people and migration loss - 21.4 thousand people in 2013. At the beginning of this year the rural population was 2 million 193 thousand people. Villagers are almost a quarter of the country’s population.

"Flows of internal migration from the village to the city in the country are explained with the development of industry and services in the cities," - said the representative of the National Statistics Committee. In 2013 78.4 thousand people emigrated from the countryside and 54 thousand people came to permanent residence. Most of the people who moves from countryside are young people who move to the city to further education or employment.