Originally Posted by
katie23
Have you been to Taiwan? I've been there 3x and have had long chats with locals (professionals). They said that people there are having fewer children or having children later in life, partly due to cost of living. It's very expensive to buy a house/ apartment in the major cities. Some schools in the provinces are closing due to lack of students. This was pre-covid.
Same case for Japan & Korea - they also have declining birth rates. I've a friend who's a professor in Korea - she said even universities are worried abput enrollment rates for the next few decades. Depression and suicide rates are also high in S. Korea and Japan.
I haven't been to Japan but the situation there re: birth rates, schools closing in the provinces is well documented. The work culture in Japan for "salarymen" is also not conducive for family life or parenthood.
Declining birth rates in developed countries or post-industrial societies is common.
Birth rates are still high in developing countries like PH, Indonesia, India, etc so yes, the planet is still overpopulated with humans. India is projected to surpass China as the most populous country in a few years. We're near 8B now - projected to reach 8B on 15 Nov 2022, accdg to Worldometer.