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Japan Forward
5 days ago
- Business
- Japan Forward
Births Fall Below 700,000 Far Earlier Than Expected: Is There a Way Out?
このページを 日本語 で読む The number of children born in Japan in 2024 fell below 700,000 for the first time. This is 14 years earlier than the government had projected. The sharp decline underscores the rapid pace of the country's falling number of births. A major factor behind the trend is the growing reluctance among young people to marry or have children, largely attributed to economic insecurity. In response, experts are calling for urgent measures to improve the financial situation of younger generations. In 2023, the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research estimated that 755,000 children would be born to Japanese citizens in 2024. It had projected that the number of births would drop below 700,000 in 2038, with a forecast of 692,000 that year. Japan's social security system operates mainly on a pay-as-you-go model, funded by insurance premiums from the working-age population. If the number of births continues to decline at the current rate, the burden on workers will increase, putting the system's financial stability at risk. Time is also running out to reverse the trend. The number of people born in the 1990s, who are now of marriageable age, had been steady at around 1.2 million per year. However, that figure dropped below 1.1 million in 2005 and fell to under 1 million by 2016. Future birth cohorts are expected to shrink even further. The government has warned that the years leading up to 2030 may be the "last chance" to reverse the trend. However, effective countermeasures have yet to be implemented. Japan's total fertility rate, the average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime, also fell to a record low of 1.15. Economic uncertainty is a major reason why more young people are choosing not to marry or have children. Takumi Fujinami, a senior researcher at the Japan Research Institute, said, "Lower-income individuals are less likely to have children. It's urgent that we improve the economic conditions of young people preparing for marriage or parenthood, for example, by raising the minimum wage." Fujinami also noted that the decline in births is affecting not only urban areas but rural regions as well. While dual-income households are now the norm, many rural areas still lack quality job opportunities for women. He emphasized the need to "rethink how female employment is structured in regional areas too." Author: Kazuyuki Nagahashi, The Sankei Shimbun このページを 日本語 で読む
The Independent
05-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
The Asian country that has seen its number of children fall for 44th year running
The crisis of declining birth rate in Japan continues to worsen, as new government figures showed the country's child population has fallen for the 44th straight year to a new record low. In Japan the total number of children aged under 15, including foreign nationals, dropped 350,000 to 13.66 million, according to the data released by the ministry of internal affairs and communications on Sunday. Children made up just 11.1 per cent of Japan's total population, which was about 120.3 million in October 2024 following a new record fall in the country's population. Japan's child population has been falling continuously since 1982, Japan Today reported. At least 3.14 million children are aged between 12 to 14, while just 2.2 million are in the group 0 to 2 years. The are 6.99 million boys and 6.66 million girls in Japan. Japan has the second-lowest ratio of children to adults among the 37 nations with a population of at least 40 million, behind South Korea on just 10.6 per cent, according to UN data. In February, the Japanese government announced that the number of babies born in the country fell to a record low of 720,988 in 2024 – a ninth consecutive year of decline. Births were down 5 per cent in a year, despite a range of steps unveiled in 2023 by former prime minister Fumio Kishida to boost childbearing, while a record number of 1.62 million deaths meant that more than two people died for every new baby born. The decline in Japan's population has been raising alarm bells for years, amid concerns over how a shrinking workforce will impact the country's economy and could even threaten national security. One Japanese expert on demographic trends has warned that if the birth rate continues its current rate of decline, the nation will be left with only one child under the age of 14 by January 2720. The latest figures released in April showed the overall population had fallen for the 14th straight year and marked the largest fall on record since the government began collecting comparable data in 1950. The number of people aged 75 or above grew by 700,000 to 20,777,000, accounting for a record 16.8 per cent of the entire population, the government said. About 29.3 per cent of Japan's population were made up of people aged 65 or above, according to reports. One reason for Japan's birth rate decline was that fewer marriages have taken place in recent years, stemming in part from the Covid-19 pandemic, said Takumi Fujinami, an economist at the Japan Research Institute. Although the number of marriages edged up 2.2 per cent to 499,999 in 2024, that came only after steep declines, such as a plunge of 12.7 per cent in 2020. "The impact could linger on in 2025 as well," Mr Fujinami told Reuters.
The Independent
27-02-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Japan's birth rate plummets to lowest in 125 years
The number of babies born in Japan has dropped to the lowest the country has ever seen since records began 125 years ago, falling ninth straight year despite the government's efforts to reverse the decline. Japan recorded 720,988 births in 2024, five per cent down from the previous year, the health ministry said on Thursday. The year-on-year decline underscores Japan's long-standing issues of a rapidly ageing and shrinking population, which has serious fallout for the country's economy and national security. The country saw a record of 1.6 million deaths last year, causing the population to shrink by almost 900,000 people, including those who immigrated out of Japan. It means that two people died for every new baby born. Japan's demographics have alarmed policymakers and researchers as it is also the fastest ageing country with nearly 30 per cent of population already over 65. Experts blamed fewer marriages in recent years due to the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic and the decline is set to continue despite improving the marriage rate. Takumi Fujinami, an economist at the Japan Research Institute, told Reuters: "The impact could linger on in 2025 as well'. The number of marriages edged up 2.2 per cent to 499,999 in 2024, which came only after steep declines, such as a plunge of 12.7 per cent in 2020. The former prime minister Fumio Kishida 's government used measures to boost child-bearing, including expanding childcare facilities, offering housing subsidies, and even launching a government-run dating app to encourage marriage and childbearing. In more drastic measures the government agencies launched an experimental four-day work week for employees of Tokyo Metropolitan Government, one of the country's largest employers. Mr Kishida last year said it was a 'now or never situation'. 'Japan is standing on the verge of whether we can continue to function as a society,' he had said. 'Focusing attention on policies regarding children and child-rearing is an issue that cannot wait and cannot be postponed. Japan's data is in contrast to South Korea's development of rising fertility rate for the first time in nine years on Wednesday. It was the glimmer of hope for the country which has the world's lowest birth rate. Experts believe South Korea's positive turn resulted from government support in the three areas of work-family balance, childcare and housing, as well as a campaign for businesses to nudge employees towards parenthood.
