The Japanese government is moving to pay an additional 80,000 yen (about fifty thousand rupees) to couples with only one child.
Japan is looking for ways to stop the alarming decline in the birth rate. As part of this, the government is moving to pay an additional 80,000 yen (about fifty thousand rupees) to couples with only one child.
But critics say the amount may not be enough to convince people struggling with rising prices and stagnant incomes to have a baby. Others point out that there has already been an attempt to pay the issue and there may be no chance of a solution.
Currently, new parents in Japan receive a lump sum of ¥420,000 upon the birth of a baby. The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare is proposing to raise this amount to 500,000 yen. The new amount will come into effect from April 1, the start of the next financial year.
A worsening condition
The decision to increase the amount comes amid Japan’s latest population statistics.
The population which was 12.8 crore in 2017 has decreased to 12.57 crore in 2021. A study published before the coronavirus pandemic in the medical journal The Lancet predicted that Japan’s total population would shrink to 5.3 million by the end of this century.
The decision to marry late and have fewer children has been evident among the Japanese in recent decades. This is a conscious decision considering financial matters.
Demographics now look optimistic given the problems caused by Covid in the country and the recent impact of the Ukraine conflict on the global economy.
Only 3,84,942 babies were born in the first six months of this year. This is five percent less than the same period last year. The ministry expects the total number of births this year to be less than eight lakh. Last year, 8,11,604 babies were born. This is the first time since the government started collecting the figures in 1899.
Children are very expensive
“Getting money from the government when I had my son definitely helped. But that amount was not enough to cover all my hospital expenses,” said Ayako, a Tokyo housewife who did not want to give her last name.
Ayako’s condition was somewhat complicated as she needed a caesarean section. The Mainichi newspaper quoted Ayako as saying that the average cost of having a baby in Japan is about 473,000 yen.
“We’ve talked about having another baby, and we want to. But now my husband and I have come to the conclusion that it’s not really possible,” Ayako told DW. ”I would say 80,000 yen would be useful, but how much of an advantage would that really be? The baby needs clothes and food. “They are growing fast and demanding more and more,” he said.
“I took a break from work. It affected our savings. My husband has a steady job but earns the same income as before covid. “But the cost of basic food items and fuel is also rising sharply in the coming months,” he said.
Is the approach short sighted?
The Japanese government and local governments have offered incentives to encourage people to have larger families. Some of them include the promise of rent-free cars and houses in rural areas.
Noriko Hama, an economics analyst and professor at Kyoto’s Doshisha University, said it was a short-sighted approach that failed to address the wider problems facing young couples in Japan today.
“It’s not going to magically solve the problems facing Japan as a nation. This is not just a matter of throwing money at young couples and hoping they have more children. It is a problem of poor social infrastructure that allows people to feel safe enough to have children. People are already dissatisfied with the environment in which a child should be brought up. “The birth rate will not increase until it improves,” he said.
Government far from reality
It costs a lot to ensure that a child goes to a good secondary school and then a good university. Higher education in Japan usually lasts four years. Even if the student works part-time, it will create a huge burden on the family.
Noriko Hama said with wages largely unchanged for more than a decade and daily expenses rising with inflation, the pressure is greater than ever.
“It is common for a government to conclude that enough money will solve the problem. They are completely removed from the reality of ordinary Japanese people. I am afraid that the government does not feel the insecurity, fear and needs of the people. “Until we have a government that recognizes the demands of the people, this situation will never change,” he said.
