New Policy Aimed at Addressing Aging Population and Low Birth Rates
China has officially ended its two-child policy, enabling married couples to have up to three children for the first time in over 40 years. This significant change was reported by Beijing’s state-owned Global Times, following a Chinese Communist Party politburo meeting led by President Xi Jinping. The policy shift is part of the government’s strategy to actively address the challenges posed by an aging population.
The Global Times outlined various “supportive measures” to complement the new policy. These include initiatives to reduce educational expenses for families, enhanced tax and housing benefits, legal protections for working women, efforts to control excessive dowries, and educational campaigns focusing on marriage and relationships.
Additionally, the national retirement age will be postponed to help maintain a robust workforce, according to the report.
Despite being the world’s most populous nation with 1.41 billion residents, China’s recent census indicated that its population is growing at the slowest rate since the 1950s. Data revealed a fertility rate of 1.3 children per woman in 2020, comparable to aging societies like Japan and Italy. This figure is significantly below the approximately 2.1 children required for replacement levels, raising concerns about the future economic growth of this industrial powerhouse.
China’s stringent one-child policy was implemented in 1979 to curb population growth and prevent an overwhelming demographic surge. This policy included fines for non-compliance, as well as coercive sterilizations and sex-selective abortions, leading to a notable gender imbalance due to a preference for male children.
In 2013, the policy was relaxed, allowing couples to have a second child if at least one parent was an only child. The complete prohibition on having second children was lifted in 2016; however, this did not significantly increase the birth rate, as reflected in census data indicating a continued decline since 2017.
Research conducted by academics at Hangzhou University earlier this year suggested that while wealthier couples with one child might be encouraged to have a second, the rising costs of childcare and education are discouraging first-time parents.
