Russia's birth rate rose 5.6 percent in 2012

MOSCOW, May 25 (UPI) -- The Russian government said the country's birth rate in 2012 was 5.6 percent above the previous year.

Health Minister Veronika Skvortsova said Friday the national birth rate rose from 12.6 per 1,000 people in 2011 to 13.3.

Skvortsova said the abortion rate in Russia was down 5.5 percent last year, a total decline of nearly 54,000 procedures. She credited increased government support for low-income mothers for the decline, Russia's RIA Novosti news agency said.