The Japanese government is moving to pay an additional 80,000 yen (regarding 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 (regarding 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 not be any 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 beginning of the next financial year.
Deteriorating condition
The decision to increase the amount comes amid Japan’s worrying 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 issues.
Demographics are now looking 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 housewife from Tokyo who did not want to give her last name.
Ayako’s condition was somewhat complicated as she required a caesarean section. The Mainichi newspaper quoted Ayako as saying that the average cost of having a baby in Japan is regarding 473,000 yen.
“We have talked regarding having another baby, and we want to. But now my husband and I have come to the conclusion that it is not really possible,” Ayako told DW. ”I would say that 80,000 yen would be useful, but how much of a benefit would it actually be? Baby needs clothes and food. “They are growing fast and demanding more and more,” she said.
“I took leave from work. It affected our savings. My husband has a steady job but is earning the same income as before covid. “But the cost of basic food items and fuel are also rising sharply in the coming months,” she said.
Is the approach short-sighted?
The Japanese government and local governments have come up with incentives to encourage people to have larger families. Some of them include the promise of cars and rent-free houses in rural areas.
Noriko Hama, an economics analyst and professor at Kyoto’s Doshisha University, said it’s a short-sighted approach that fails to address the broader 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 raised. “The birth rate will not increase until it improves,” she said.
Government far from reality
It costs a lot to ensure that a child gets into a good high 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 that with salaries 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 come to the conclusion 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,” she said.
