00:00 China is facing deep concerns regarding its declining population.
00:06 The country witnessed a record low number of births in 2022.
00:11 The Asian nation witnessed a 10% decline in the number of babies born last year.
00:17 As per the data published by the National Health Commission in 2022, China had just
00:22 9.56 million births.
00:25 The number of babies born last year was the lowest figure since records began in 1949.
00:31 Reports suggest that the significant decline in population indicates the government's
00:36 inability to implement its schemes and policies to encourage parents to have more children.
00:41 However, the Chinese government is trying to support parents with its schemes amid increasing
00:47 alarm that the country will become demographically imbalanced.
00:51 According to reports, the decline in population is the result of a lack of interest among
00:56 couples to have more children.
00:58 This is mainly because of the high costs of child care and education, growing unemployment
01:03 and job insecurity.
01:05 All these factors have deterred young couples from having more than one child or even having
01:09 children at all.
01:11 Last year, the country's population also fell for the first time in 60 years.
01:16 Its population was recorded to be at 1.41 billion people.
01:20 China also witnessed the lowest fertility rate in 2022.
01:24 The declining population of the country has become a major cause of concern for domestic
01:28 demographers who are lamenting that China will get old before it gets rich.
01:33 The fall in population can result in slowing of the economy as revenues drop and government
01:38 debt increases due to soaring health and welfare costs.
01:42 One of the main reasons behind the shrinkage of China's population was its one-child policy.
01:47 The country had imposed the stringent policy between 1980 and 2015.
01:52 However, the abandonment of the policy nearly a decade ago had some impact on the population.
01:58 Nearly 40% of Chinese newborns last year were the second child of a married couple.
02:03 According to Chinese health authorities' data, 15% of the children were from families with
02:08 three or more children.
02:09 To increase the country's staggering population, China has been opting for a range of measures
02:15 including child care support, financial incentives, etc.
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