Japan’s fertility rate, which has seen a precipitous fall for many years, has reached another record low as the government ramps up efforts to encourage young people to get married and start families — even launching its own dating app.
The nation of 123.9 million people only recorded 727,277 births last year, according to new data released by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare on Friday. The fertility rate – defined as the total number of births a woman has in her lifetime – dropped from 1.26 to 1.20.
For a population to remain stable, it needs a fertility rate of 2.1. Anything above that will see a population expand, with a large proportion of children and young adults, as seen in India and many African nations.
But in Japan, the fertility rate has been well below that stable marker of 2.1 for half a century, experts say – it fell below that level after the 1973 global oil crisis pushed economies into recession, and never recovered.
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Still, the government is now racing to soften the impact, launching new government agencies to focus specifically on this problem. It has launched initiatives such as expanding child care facilities, offering housing subsidies to parents, and in some towns, even paying couples to have children.
In the capital Tokyo, local officials are trying a new tack: launching a government-run dating app, which is in early testing phases and will be fully operational later this year.
I mean, a dating app explicitly for people that want kids is a pretty good idea to boost population.
But the reason populations are shrinking everywhere, is the economy sucks if you’re not rich and kids are expensive.
Governments and corporations want more kids, because it will keep labor prices low. With a smaller population there’s a smaller pool of labor, and wages get competitive.
If wages were higher, more people would have kids.
That’s the real fix. Not subsidizing with tax dollars to encourage kids.
Honestly give me a 24 hour work week with a median salary income and I’ll become a birthing machine
Wait, on which end of things? Because I’m imagining you as a woman, laying down, knees in stirrups, spread wide with a hospital sheet draped over. And between your legs is a convayer belt. Baby pops out onto the convayer belt, and starts down the line. Then another pops out…and another…and another.
It’s like a looping gif.
I’m sorry to disappoint you there but that’s not how childbirth works, even after the industrial revolution. This here might be a good start to see why a conveyor belt system isn’t feasible with kids
I’m betting conveyor belt is way better than a rope and pulley system though
Here’s how you fix it.
Cap a workers real hours to 25 /week. Continue to pay them exactly what they are paid now.
Suddenly, they have free time, feel like life is worth living and having a family becomes realistic.
You can see this pattern in wildlife. When resources are scarce and every day is stressful, no babies or few that survive. I wonder why 😨
And make families the most important thing in the country. If people’s status comes from the number of children and grandchildren they have instead of how big your house, car or yacht is, priorities would be very different. That would about kill capitalism, but it’s about time it was killed anyway.
I think this would actually help capitalism be less self-destructive. People would still be spending all there money on stuff. But the products would be more quality of life/child focussed. It then also leads to a larger base to generate income from.
I think this would however destroy the current short term focussed ‘share price’ version of capitalism that were stuck in.
I think this would however destroy the current short term focussed ‘share price’ version of capitalism that were stuck in.
I see no problem there.
BUT DaTiNg ApP! FML
I realize that a lot of governments planned for population growth as part of their economic strategy for the future and for social welfare programs for the aging. They need to start rethinking things (and acknowledge a stalled or shrinking population is a good thing for the planet.) The economy portion can be remedied by just having the obscenely wealthy pay their fair share of taxes.
I think what many people (and thus governments) don’t want to accept is that maybe people just don’t want kids. It always happens, when people are more educated and have better quality of life – and access to contraception, they have fewer children. If money was really the defining factor, then why aren’t all rich people having 10 kids? Why is the birth rate in countries like Finland (where they have a lot of social programs, high quality of life and support for parents) so low?
I am absolutely not denying that having no money factors into the decision to not have kids, for people who actually do want them. But we need to face it, a lot of people -when given the choice- just don’t want kids. You can’t pay me enough to have kids. I could be a billionaire and I wouldn’t want kids. The only way you could make me have kids is by forcing me. And while typing this, suddenly I have the urge to erase it all, because I fear the day when governments finally realize what I typed above and they actually start forcing people to have kids.
Edit: I think what should happen is for us all to figure out how our society should work when global birth rate inevitably drops below replacement rate, and what we want from life other than infinite growth.
because I fear the day when governments finally realize what I typed above and they actually start forcing people to have kids.
Why do you think anti-abortion policies have become so big in the USA?
I thought it was because of religious nutjobs trying to force everyone else to live by their rules. I doubt that Kate and Joe down the block have some kind of pro-corporation-meatgrinder reason to be anti-choice.
It is a combination of the two, especially as states fighting abortion seem to also be the states lowering work age limits.
Ah well, that’s a good point. It’s not like politicians never lie about their motivations either.
when people are more educated and have better quality of life – and access to contraception, they have fewer children.
And thus the reason education in America has been dismantled by the republicans these past 40 years.
That doesn’t solve the lack of labor available though.
> wants population growth
> strongly opposes immigrationOr you know, providing time, money, and a place to raise a family.
Or you know a culture that supports an equitable division of domestic tasks.
The country’s fucked and it’s too late for any it massive immigration and naturalization programs to save it.
“Hey guys, here’s a dating app that fix all the problems we cultivated over generations of short-sighted traditions.” I agree, they’re fucked and the fall is going to hurt.
Immigration is now relaxed, but now nobody wants to come because the Yen has devalued so much.
Immigration is a bandaid fix for work culture problems. People will have families and kids if they have the time and money.
Nah.
I could show up, have babies with 100 Japanese women, and then it’s back to America after my 2 week vacation ends.
Japan, all you gotta do is pay for my travel, and lost wages from not being at work. Oh I’ll be at work alright. Working your entire female populace!!! YEEEEAAAAAHHHHHH!!!
…look, times are tough. Just let me have my fantasy, ok?
YEEEEAAAAAAHHHHH!!! Look at all the Japanese women I get!!!
looks around
eats a sandwich
YEEEEAAAAAHHHHHH!!! GRILLED CHEESE!!!
gross
Immigration is for the capitalist class interest not the peoples.
In its current form, I agree, but national borders only exist to cause inequality.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Japan’s fertility rate, which has seen a precipitous fall for many years, has reached another record low as the government ramps up efforts to encourage young people to get married and start families — even launching its own dating app.
But in Japan, the fertility rate has been well below that stable marker of 2.1 for half a century, experts say – it fell below that level after the 1973 global oil crisis pushed economies into recession, and never recovered.
Even if Japan were to boost its fertility rate tomorrow, its population will keep falling until the skewed ratio of young people to older adults balances out.
It has launched initiatives such as expanding child care facilities, offering housing subsidies to parents, and in some towns, even paying couples to have children.
In the capital Tokyo, local officials are trying a new tack: launching a government-run dating app, which is in early testing phases and will be fully operational later this year.
The app even caught the eye of billionaire Elon Musk, who wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “I’m glad the government of Japan recognizes the importance of this matter.
The original article contains 682 words, the summary contains 188 words. Saved 72%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
Why? To put your most beloved ones inside the meat machine? To be the fuel for the abusive and unfair social system? Why the fuck people would like to do that? Societies, families are globally DESTROYED after so many decades of constant abuse and pressure .
It’s baked in the culture.
I have Japanese friends that don’t want kids because their parents specifically told them if you pop them out the mom alone needs to care for the kid. Most parents will straight up refuse to help with watching grandkids.
I went to Japan and the people there literally mean mug you because my kid was having a hard time with jet lag. I’m annoying them because my kid was crying. Who wants this kind of pressure?
