In China, couples are now allowed to have three children, instead of two. In doing so, the country hopes to balance the aging of the population and prevent a population decline in the long term.
The adjustment of population control policy was announced after a meeting of the Communist Party politburo. The workforce in China has been shrinking over the past decade, putting pressure on the economy.
China has had a strict birth control policy since 1980 to combat overpopulation. There are fines for violations. In 2015, the maximum number of children per couple was already increased to two, but according to Chinese media the average woman in China still has ‘only’ 1.3 children in her life. That’s not enough to maintain the population.
High cost
In addition to adjusting the birth policy, China also wants to introduce other measures to combat population decline. It was not announced today what measures these are.
Financial allowances were discussed earlier, but those are promises for the time being, says correspondent Eefje Rammeloo. According to her, it had been a while since the two-child policy would be adjusted. “Population growth hasn’t been this low since the 1950s and in a few years the population will start to shrink.”
According to Rammeloo, this has to do with the costs associated with raising a child. “Due to the one-child policy, there has been enormous pressure on families. That one child has to do a lot, for example take extra math lessons and learn calligraphy. That costs a lot of money and time.” Many parents are therefore not interested in raising an extra child.
Birth rate rose only briefly
When the one-child policy was relaxed a few years ago, more children were born for a very short time, but the birth rate did not increase over the years. In 2020, 18 percent fewer children were born than the year before.
“Experts think that measures such as affordable childcare and extending maternity leave will have more influence,” explains Rammeloo. “But those financial concessions from the government are still promises. It is a lot more difficult to make those things concrete.”
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