The loss of younger ones is probably more monumental than "mere" numbers show. Following the 1975 fiasco, birth rates exploded among New Zealand JWs: there was a veritable baby boom for years and years. Although there was a fall off in the number of active witnesses following 1975 (as reflected in the yearly worldwide reports printed in the Watchtower and Yearbooks), this decline was accompanied by the remaining witnesses having more children. Consequently, Kingdom Halls throughout the country reported a huge influx of younger ones and at conventions, it seemed that prams and pushcairs were everywhere.
Yet, some thirty or so years later, where on earth are all those born into the religion after 1975? They should be at the age - if males - of filling the ranks of the dwindling older ones, stepping up into ministerial servant and elder roles. But congregations struggle to get an adequate number of males stepping into these roles. It is more usual to see older - and elderly - males in these roles.
Is the organization aware of this loss of younger ones? No way can the organization be ignorant of this - it stands out in practically every congregation throughout the country (perhaps it is not so pronounced in larger population centres like Auckland). I was surprised to learn that, a year or two ago, the kingdom hall in one of the smaller towns in New Zealand, Shannon, was no longer in use; the few mainly older JWs now meet in the kingdom hall in a neighbouring town, Foxton. Yet, the Shannon kingdom hall which is visibly located on the main highway out of town is maintained as if it is still in use - a convenient fiction for a slowly dying religion. Witnesses were supposed to have explained this closure as a sign that younger ones have moved away from Shannon to find work in larger population centres. That's rubbish. The nearby city of Palmerston North is only 30 kms away and is one of the largest employers in the region. Besides, the Palmerston North congegations (I think there remain two in that city) are not reporting any influx of witnesses from other regions.
