Japan pushes plans to raise birthrates by ‘last chance’ deadline

TOKYO – Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the period to 2030 is the “last chance” to reverse a

declining birthrate

that threatens Japan’s long-term economic prospects.

Mr Kishida told a news conference on Friday that his government plans to enhance childcare allowances, provide housing assistance for young families raising children, work to reduce the costs of education and raise wages for younger workers.

“The declining birthrate problem is a fight against time,” Mr Kishida said.

He added men need to do more in helping to raise children. His government is looking to raise the target rate of paternity leave to 50 per cent by the 2025 fiscal year and 85 per cent by fiscal 2030.

“The government will make creation of a ‘children first’ society the common aim of its policies,” the prime minister said.

Japan in 2022 posted the fewest births since it began keeping records, continuing a seven-year decline that further aggravates the challenges of its rapidly ageing society, data released in February showed.

Mr Kishida’s government will put together a draft package on its policies by the end of the month.

It is planning to present a framework by June for doubling spending on children, he said.

The government has been trying to increase the labour force by encouraging more women to work and accepting some immigrants.

Mr Kishida added society needs to shift away from placing the bulk of the burden of childrearing on women.

He outlined subsidies aimed at helping part-timers work longer hours without facing a tax barrier, and having both men and women take parental leave after the birth of a child. 

The lack of births means Japan will have a smaller workforce and fewer taxpayers to sustain the world’s third-largest economy in the years to come.

Japan’s elderly citizens make up a higher proportion of the population than in any other country.

The rising cost of caring for this demographic is draining the nation’s coffers, helping make it the world’s most indebted country. 

The government allocated 4.8 trillion yen (S$48 billion) from the fiscal 2023 budget to a new agency dedicated to children and their families, the Nikkei newspaper reported in December. BLOOMBERG