Government data reveals worrying demographic trend in Japanwith the country experiencing a decline in births to levels never seen before, in addition to recording more than twice as many deaths as new babies. According to official figures, it was also evident that marriages reached their lowest level since 1933. These numbers underscore the dramatic demographic challenges facing the world’s third-largest economy.including the shortage of workers and the provision of health care for the tenth of the population now over 80 years of age.
Births in 2023 decreased for the eighth consecutive year, reaching 758,631which represents a decrease of 5.1 percent, according to preliminary data. The number of deaths, which amounted to 1,590,503, was more than double that figure, meaning that the overall population decreased by 831,872 people. Births peaked in the postwar period between 1947 and 1949, with more than 2.5 million people born each year, according to a health ministry official in charge of the data. for a second baby boom Between 1971 and 1974, the annual number of births remained around two million.
In 2023, 489,281 marriages were registered, representing a decrease of 5.9 percent from the previous year and the first time they have been below half a million. This figure is the lowest since 1933, when 486,058 couples were married. Back then, the Japanese population was approximately 70 million compared to around 124 million today.
The decline in births and marriages poses significant challenges for Japan, not only in terms of population growth and labor force, but also in the sustainability of its social security and healthcare system in a context in which the proportion of older people continues to increase. As the population ages and declines, it is crucial that the country implements effective policies and programs to address these demographic issues and ensure a prosperous and sustainable future for generations to come.
Now, for every baby born in Japan, two people die, what do Internet users have to say?
- «People who don’t want to get married in the first place probably don’t want to have children either, the problem lies there.».
- «If your child ends up being a NEET, obviously no one will want to have children and take the risk.».
- «There is a lot of uncertainty about what will happen in the future.».
- «In Japan, where there are a lot of old women and national policies are weak, they will take you crazy if you say you want to have children.».
- «In the past, people often worked because they worried about their future retirement. Nowadays, they care more about their children’s future only to be abandoned when they grow old».
- «It is a very complicated game for women. Once they become pregnant, their role in society changes forever. Not everyone wants to be chained to a family.».
- «I don’t know how long we will last, but it is natural that more and more people do not want to dedicate their precious and limited time to caring for children.».
- «If you are a housewife, you don’t want to earn a lot. It is too hard for women to raise children while working. Men also want more daycares, but there are almost no companies that have such a good environment».
- «I also feel sorry for the children who will live in the future».
- «It takes a lot of money and a lot of effort if you want to have a decent child. It is impossible for a woman to raise a child while she works.».
- «Because of a certain incompetent government there is no money».
- «I can’t be so pitiful as to bring a life and make it suffer 100% for my own ego in this shitty world.».
- «I can’t bring a child to the living hell that is Japan.».
- «We are a society that only needs highly qualified people. The bottom line is that you can’t have a baby and then look for a job when the child grows up.».
- «When I was young, I said I would never get married: I didn’t want to have children. But when I got married and had children, I thought the opposite. You should try it once».
Fountain: Yaraon!
