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Kast says Leo XIV expressed concern over declining birth rates
Following his audience with the pope, Chile’s president discussed migration and demographic decline with Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher.
VATICAN | CHURCH IN CHILE
Ana Paula Morales (Poli)
11/5/20262 min read
Illustrative photograph of children. Chile’s fertility rate fell to 0.99 children per woman in 2025, according to provisional figures from the National Statistics Institute. Photo: Sohaib Ghyasi / Unsplash.
Chilean President José Antonio Kast said Pope Leo XIV expressed concern about families and declining birth rates during their audience Wednesday, November 4, at the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace. The meeting came as Chile’s fertility rate fell below one child per woman for the first time, according to provisional figures from the National Statistics Institute.
“He also expressed his interest in families and birth rates, which are becoming an increasingly difficult issue in different countries,” Kast told reporters after the meeting, according to EWTN Noticias. The president added that the Holy Father recalled his visits to Chile during his years as prior general of the Order of St. Augustine.
After the audience, Kast met with Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, secretary for relations with states and international organizations. According to the Holy See Press Office, that second meeting addressed migration and demographic decline. The discussion also highlighted the Catholic Church’s contribution to Chilean society and the place of popular piety in the country’s spiritual life.
Migration and the Church’s place in Chile
The audience took place two days before Leo XIV was scheduled to begin his apostolic journey to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru. Migration has been a defining issue during the early months of Kast’s presidency. He took office on March 11, 2026, following a campaign in which public safety and migration controls featured prominently. According to Reuters, his first measures included decrees strengthening security along the northern border.
Catholicism remains the country’s largest religious affiliation. According to the National Statistics Institute’s 2024 census, 8,168,978 people identified as Catholic, representing 54% of respondents age 15 and older who answered the religion question. In 2002, that share was 70%.
During the exchange of gifts, Kast presented the pope with a restored image of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Chile’s patroness, in the year marking the centenary of her coronation, according to EWTN Noticias.
Chile recorded 146,446 births in 2025
Chile’s National Statistics Institute recorded 146,446 births in 2025, compared with 275,916 in 1993 — a decline of 46.9% over 32 years. During that period, the average age at childbearing rose from 27 to 30. The total fertility rate stood at 0.99 children per woman in 2025, according to the agency’s provisional data.