Published on: 01/17/2023 – 07:46
It’s a historic turning point. China, the world’s most populous country, saw its population shrink in 2022, according to figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday, January 17. Unheard of for sixty years.
“Seven hundred million Chinese and I and I and I,” sang Jacques Dutronc almost six decades ago. China’s population has doubled since that song, but last year the tune changed: For the first time, deaths exceeded births in China.
declining birth rate
A total of 1.41 billion Chinese were registered in the country’s 31 provinces, autonomous regions and provincial-level cities in 2022, a negative growth rate of 0.6 per 1,000 1961 ! The ultimate downfall? Maybe not, but this trend is here to stay. According to the approval given to couples to a second child, then a third party Child, despite childbirth allowance, establishment of support structures babysitthe extension of maternity and even paternity leave in certain companies, deterrence campaigns abortionsthe birth rate continues to move back. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, 6.77 births per 1,000 people were recorded last year. This too is a level not seen since 1949. At this rate, China’s age pyramid will soon mushroom like neighboring countries South Korea and Japan, with the problems associated with an aging population and declining assets to fund retirement and, more importantly, care old Parents. And according to the UN, India could pass China as the country with the most inhabitants this year.
cost of living
The end of the one-child policy came late in a China where the costs Education and housing were already high. This morning comments on the network Weibo was not surprised by this announcement: “It is so normal that the population decreases, writes a user. Who else wants children? It’s such a burden today. ” The Rise of unemployment among young people since the beginning of the pandemic nothing helps. Neither does the weight of family traditions. The Lunar New Year holiday and family reunions beginning this weekend have been dreaded by single Chinese women, who have been bombarded with questions, “When are you getting married? When do you have children? ” Young woman emancipated no longer want to take care of the children alone in an economic context that has been slowed down by three years of “zero Covid-19” policy.
In China, the birthrate continues to fall: 12 million babies were born last year, up from 14.65 million in 2019. According to a study by the University of the People, the health crisis has contributed to this decline in the birth rate among women under 30 years old. https://t.co/Hk03c5gbFE
— Stephane Lagarde (@StephaneLagarde) November 22, 2021
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