South Korea’s fertility has dropped to an all-time low. Despite the billions of dollars spent to increase the birth rate in the country, the population continues to decrease for a fourth straight year. As per the data released by South Korea’s National Statistics Office on Wednesday, the expected number of babies per woman fell to 0.72 in 2023, lower than 0.78 in 2022.
The government of South Korea has made it a priority to elevate the birth rate and has guaranteed to invent extraordinary measures to achieve its goals. Not only this, but major political parties in the country announced more public housing and relief on loans to stop the population decline. It is feared that the decreasing birth rate will lead to national extinction in the upcoming years.
More than $270 billion has already been spent on childcare subsidies since 2006; however, all the efforts have been in vain. The parties’ focus on population growth aims to reverse record-low fertility rates. Moreover, marriage is a prerequisite in South Korea to have children. The number of marriages has also decreased in the country, mainly because of the financial burden that comes with it.
Many experts claim that there are various reasons for this low birth rate. Mostly, the increasing prices of property and childcare costs are hard to manage because society’s competition makes it difficult to secure high-paying jobs. Women also find it hard to manage their careers along with household work and providing care to children.
South Korea is not the only country facing a population decrease. Japan also recorded its fertility rate as 1.26 in 2022, while China recorded 1.09. Seoul, the capital of South Korea, had the lowest fertility rate in the country, at just 0.55 in 2023. It is projected that the fertility rate in South Korea will further decrease to 0.68 in 2024.
