Eduard Mihalas at SPIEF 2025: "The global demographic crisis opens up new opportunities"

From June 18 to 21, St. Petersburg hosts the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), one of the leading events dedicated to the global economy.

The business program of the forum was opened on June 18 by the session "Shaping a new platform for Global Growth", at which the final report on the results of the international Open Dialogue, previously held at the National Centre RUSSIA, was presented. The session consisted of three tracks dedicated to technology, economics and humans in a rapidly changing world.

Eduard Mihalas, Regional Adviser on Population and Development at the United Nations Population Fund, noted that the global demographic crisis is not only a challenge, but also an opportunity to reassemble outdated social and economic models.

"The real fertility crisis is when people want to have children, but they can't afford them," he stressed.

According to the expert, fertility is declining in many countries around the world today. At the same time, surveys show that most people would like to have more children, but face obstacles ranging from economic difficulties to a lack of quality housing and limited access to medicine. About 50% of respondents named economic reasons as the main obstacle, he noted.

"People want to, but they can't. This is the essence of the modern demographic crisis. And here there is a space for new solutions: from technological to institutional," Mihalas explained.

He noted that automation, robotics and the introduction of AI open up new scenarios for the adaptation of the economy to an aging population, but at the same time it is necessary to apply an integrated approach — to take into account migration flows, health, and differences in life expectancy between men and women.

According to the speaker, special attention should be paid to the opportunities for women to combine motherhood with a career: "A woman should have the right to choose whether to stay with children or return to work. And if she wants to return, the state and society must support her."

In addition, the expert considers it important to reconsider the role of the older generation: "People age, but retain knowledge, experience and energy. We must give them the opportunity to remain active participants in the economy."

The session was moderated by Maxim Oreshkin, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration of the Russian Federation. He stressed that this year the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum is taking place against the backdrop of tumultuous events in the world.

"We must not forget which long-term trends and challenges have led to the current situation, which trends are basic and decisive. It is important to have an open dialogue about how we can build the world of the future and how to create a new platform for global growth. In which countries will this global growth take place, on what technologies will it be built, on what principles and cultural code. Our task is to move forward for the benefit of people in all countries that, like Russia, are working on the future. It is through open dialogue that our future and our understanding of it are built," Maxim Oreshkin said.

At the session organized by the National Centre, the speakers, among other things, discussed the report of the results of the Open Dialogue prepared by the Centre for Interdisciplinary Expertise "Third Rome". The results of the session "Shaping a new platform for Global Growth" became the basis for the subsequent SPIEF 2025 business program.

The session "Shaping a new platform for global Growth" was devoted to the current challenges of our time: economic and political fragmentation, demographic changes, the consequences of the introduction of breakthrough technologies, as well as the social and technological gap both within and between countries.