TOKYO – Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Wednesday instructed his government to set aside around 3.5 trillion yen (S$34 billion) in the annual budget for childcare, said Economy Minister Shigeyuki Goto.

The figure is slightly more than previously estimated.

Mr Kishida has vowed to double childcare spending over the next three years in a bid to help reverse the country’s dwindling birth rate.

The government had estimated that it needed to secure around 3 trillion yen a year to cover the expansion of childcare allowances and other related benefits.

Mr Kishida unveiled the increased size of spending at a meeting of ministers that included Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki, said Mr Goto, who also attended the meeting.

“Prime Minister Kishida told us to consider expanding childcare measures by around 3.5 trillion yen in the process of compiling the annual budget,” Mr Goto told reporters.

The measures aim to support higher education, prevent child abuse in poverty, and ensure medical care for handicapped children, Mr Goto cited Mr Kishida as telling the meeting.

There was no discussion on the sources of funding, he added.

Japan, the industrial world’s most indebted government with a public debt that is more than double the size of its economy, is struggling to secure sources of funding to support Mr Kishida’s childcare spending plan.

Mr Kishida has ruled out sales tax hikes as an option.

His government is, meanwhile, looking to tap increased premiums for public medical care and slash other social welfare outlay to fund more childcare spending.

It is also considering introducing a new type of bonds to raise funds for education fees, Kyodo news agency reported.

Births in Japan plunged to a record low in 2022, official estimates show.

They dropped below 800,000 for the first time – a watershed moment that came eight years earlier than the government expected. REUTERS