A Japanese cabinet minister tasked with tackling the country’s declining birth rate unveiled a draft proposal on Friday aimed at reversing the downward trend, including increased subsidies for child rearing and education and a wage increase for younger workers to encourage marriage and procreation.
Japan’s population of more than 125 million has been in decline for 15 years and is projected to decline to 86.7 million by 2060. A shrinking and aging population has huge implications for the economy and for national security as the country strengthens its its military to counter China’s growing assertion of territorial ambitions.
Children’s Policy Minister Masanobu Ogura said the coming years were perhaps Japan’s “last chance” to reverse the decline in birth rates. If the number of births continues to decline at the rate since the early 2000s, the youth population will shrink at twice its current rate in the 2000s, he said.
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Many young Japanese have refused to marry or have families, discouraged by bleak job prospects, incompatible corporate cultures with both parents, but especially women, working, and a public lack of tolerance for young children.
To address the problems, Ogura’s plan proposes increased financial assistance, including increased government subsidies for child education, more generous student loans for higher education, and increased access to child care services. It also aims to change the cultural mindset towards greater gender equality both at work and at home. The proposal also includes increased government assistance to companies to encourage more male staff to take paternity leave, which has been a point of contention for working fathers fearing retaliation.
Masanobu Ogura, Japan’s minister in charge of tackling falling birth rates, arrives at the prime minister’s office on August 10, 2022 in Tokyo. Ogura presented a draft proposal on March 31, 2023, aimed at reversing the country’s population decline. (AP Photo/Shuji Kajiyama, Files)
“While differing views on marriage, childbirth and child rearing should be respected, we want to create a society where the younger generation can marry, have and raise children as they wish,” Ogura said. “The fundamental direction of our measures to address low birth rates is to reverse the decline in birth rates by supporting individuals’ pursuit of happiness.”
He said he had presented the proposal to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida for further consideration. He will be part of a larger policy package that Kishida’s government will compile in June.
In 2022, Japan had 799,728 newborns, a record low, falling below 800,000 for the first time since surveys began in 1899. Many couples are hesitant to add to their families due to rising costs.
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Japan is the world’s third-largest economy, but the cost of living is high, wage increases have been slow, and about 40 percent of Japanese work part-time or on contracts. Critics say the government has fallen behind in making society more inclusive for children, women and minorities.
Under the Conservative ruling party, which upholds traditional family values and gender roles, single or childless women tend to be less respected and marriage is a prerequisite for having children.
Ogura’s proposal did not mention its estimated cost.
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So far, government efforts to encourage people to have more children have had little impact despite subsidies for pregnancy, birth and childcare.
In a country that ranks among the worst in the world in terms of gender equality, the situation hampers women’s careers after marriage or having children.
Most Japanese between the ages of 18 and 34 say they hope to get married at some point, but expect to have fewer than two children. A growing percentage say they have no intention of getting married, according to data cited in the proposal.
