China is struggling to raise its birth rate. New measures were presented on Monday October 28 to encourage residents to have more children.
Increase in the senior population
Dethroned by India in 2023, the Chine has become the second most populous country in the world, recalls RTL. The country also saw a significant increase in its senior population last year, with nearly 17 million people over the age of 60, according to official data. This age group currently represents 20% of China’s population, and this percentage is expected to rise to almost a third by 2035, the Economist Intelligence Unit research group noted.
Several measures on maternity
About 10 years after ending its policy of “the only child“, the Chine encounters difficulties in getting his birth rate. Faced with this situation, measures were presented on Monday to encourage its inhabitants to have more children. The Council of State has set itself the objective of building “a new culture of marriage and procreation“reports The Tribune. Improved insurance, maternity leave, subsidies and medical resources for children were notably mentioned in these measures.
Education, housing, childcare…
The measures also affect areas other than maternity. Local authorities are urged to strengthen financial aid for students from disadvantaged families with a mention of “the gradual expansion of the scope of free education”. The Council of Ministers also called on governments to budget for childcare services and levy preferential taxes and fees for them. Employment and housing also appear on the list of proposals to revive the birth rate in Chine. Local authorities are being asked to provide more help to families with several children to buy housing, but also to strengthen the protection of pregnant women and new mothers among workers.
> Also read: China: towards a decline in its population by 2025
