Ottawa, Aug 23 (IANS): Canada's population may nearly double to reach up to 74 million in 2068, according to the national statistical agency.

Statistics Canada announced on Monday that the country's population may increase from 38.2 million in 2021 to between 42.9 million and 52.5 million in 2043, and between 44.9 million and 74 million in 2068, reports Xinhua news agency.

In one medium-growth scenario, Canada's population would reach 47.8 million in 2043 and 56.5 million in 2068, it added.

Immigration is expected to remain the main driver of population growth and the natural growth is to decrease in the coming years, Statistics Canada said.

It added that in 2020, the number of children per woman reached a historically low level in the country at 1.4.

This natural growth is likely to even become negative in the brief period between 2049 and 2058, according to the projection.

Canada's population will continue to age in the coming decades.

Thus, in a medium-growth projection scenario, the average age in Canada increases from 41.7 years in 2021 to 44.1 in 2043 and to 45.1 in 2068.

The population aged 85 and older may more than triple over the same period, from 871,000 in 2021 to 3.2 million in 2068, Statistics Canada said.