Record numbers of parents in Japan say they will stop having children amid financial struggles

Japan’s birth rate has declined for the seventh consecutive year

File. People walking on a street in Tokyo’s Ginza area at dusk (AFP via Getty Images)

Parents in Japan are increasingly averse to the idea of having more children, a survey has revealed, as the country’s government expressed concern over the declining national birth rate.

In June this year, Japan’s health ministry said that the birth rate declined for a seventh consecutive year in 2022 to a record low of 1.26 per woman.

The government has since taken several measures it hopes will address its rapidly shrinking and ageing population, including increased financial aid for families raising children.

But the latest survey of parents who already have children below the age of six has revealed that a record number of them do not want more offspring because of financial struggles.

The annual Meiji Yasuda survey this year has revealed that more than 40 per cent of parents said they “no longer want more kids” — a record number since the survey was first conducted in 2018.

Earlier this year, Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida said that urgent steps must be taken to tackle Japan’s declining birth rate and stated that it was “now or never” for one of the world’s oldest societies.

Japan has in recent years been trying to encourage its people to have more children with promises of cash bonuses and better benefits, but it remains one of the most expensive places in the world to raise a child, according to surveys.

Births plunged to a new record low last year, according to official estimates, dropping below 800,000 for the first time – a watershed moment that came eight years earlier than the government had expected.

For 16 consecutive years, Japan’s population of more than 125 million has been steadily decreasing and is projected to fall to 87 million by 2070.

On Wednesday, the latest survey results said parents were hesitant to bear more children due to anxieties about future income and other financial matters.

The survey questioned 1,100 parents with children up to the age of six. Most people — 41.2 per cent — said they “no longer want more kids”. This is a dramatic rise from 35.4 per cent last year.

While 37.3 per cent said they “want more but know that is difficult,” 21.5 per cent said they “want more”, the Asahi Shimbun reported.

When those stating they “no longer want more kids” were questioned about their reasons, the majority pointed to financial worries. Of these, 46.6 per cent of respondents said they were “concerned about future income”, while others said they were “anxious over growing life costs”. Some said they would stop having children due to “age-related worries”.

In an effort to reverse the declining birthrate, Mr Kishida made support for children and their families a priority. Nikkei Asia reported that the Japanese government allocated $35.2bn from the fiscal 2023 budget to a new agency dedicated to children and their families.

Earlier this year, a senior adviser to Mr Kishida observed that Japan will “disappear” if action is not taken to curb the slowing birthrate in the country.

“If we go on like this, the country will disappear,” warned Masako Mori, an adviser to the PM in an interview to Bloomberg after Japan’s 28 February announcement of the record low births.

She said the country’s birthrate is “not falling gradually, it’s heading straight down”. “A nosedive means children being born now will be thrown into a society that becomes distorted, shrinks and loses its ability to function,” she said.