North Korea’s birthrate drops, Kim Jong-un begs women to have more babies | International on LINE | LINE TODAY

Many countries have been troubled by falling fertility rates in recent years, and North Korea is no exception. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has also recently expressed concern about the country’s low birthrate and the epidemic. When he attended the National Mothers Conference recently, he called on North Korean women to have more children, during which he couldn’t help crying.

According to foreign reports, Kim Jong-un attended the Fifth National Mothers Conference in Pyongyang on Sunday (December 3). In his speech, he mentioned that citizens have the obligation to prevent the decline in fertility rates in order to enhance national strength. He called on women to “use the power of motherhood to solve” various problems in society, describing this as a common and necessary task.

He also thanked mothers for their role in strengthening the country, saying emotionally that he “always thinks of his mother” whenever he encounters difficulties in dealing with party affairs and national work.

During the conference, Kim Jong-un appeared worried while looking at the documents. He shed tears silently and wiped his tears with a handkerchief. The women attending the conference in the audience could not help crying.

According to South Korean statistics, the population of North Korea is approximately 25.7 million, while the population of South Korea is 51 million. Reuters reports that North Korea’s fertility rate has continued to decline in recent decades. The United Nations Population Fund estimates that as of 2023, North Korea will have only 1.8 children per woman on average, below the average of 2.1 children per woman in developing countries.

Some South Korean media have reported that North Korean primary schools had four to five classes per level 10 years ago, but the number has decreased year by year since then, with only three classes per level in 2023. The report also pointed out that in order to encourage childbirth, North Korea, in addition to providing benefits and subsidies to families who have more children, has implemented a “Mother Hero” system, and citizens who have more children will be awarded the title of “Mother Hero”.

Some foreign media have analyzed that the image of Kim Jong-un publicly crying for women to have more children is believed to be carefully designed, hoping to move his emotions and get the people to cooperate in increasing the fertility rate. Some also pointed out that Kim Jong-un’s emphasis on the role of mothers and women does not rule out the possibility of paving the way for his daughter Kim Joo-ae to take over.