Thread: It’s ‘now or never’ to stop Japan’s shrinking population, PM says

Japanese Prime minister Fumio Kishida pledged on Monday to take urgent steps to tackle the country’s declining birth rate, saying it was “now or never” for one of the world’s oldest societies.


Japan has in recent years been trying to encourage its people to have more children with promises of cash bonuses and better benefits, but it remains one of the most expensive places in the world to raise a child, according to surveys.


Births plunged to a new record low last year, according to official estimates, dropping below 800,000 for the first time – a watershed moment that came eight years earlier than the government had expected.


That most likely precipitated a further population decline in a country where the median age is 49, the highest in the world behind only the tiny city-state of Monaco.


“Our nation is on the cusp of whether it can maintain its societal functions,” Kishida said in a policy speech at the opening of this year’s parliamentary session.


“It is now or never when it comes to policies regarding births and child-rearing – it is an issue that simply cannot wait any longer,” he added.


Kishida said he would submit plans to double the budget for child-related policies by June, and that a new Children and Families government agency to oversee the issue would be set up in April.


Japan is the third-most-expensive country globally to raise a child, according to YuWa Population Research, behind only China and South Korea, countries also seeing shrinking populations in worrying signs for the global economy.


Other countries are also coming to grips with ageing and shrinking populations. Last week, China reported that its population dropped in 2022 for the first time in 60 years.


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This is really only a problem for an economic system that depends on stock market growth and an ever increasing concentration of wealth in the top 2 or 3% of the population.

^Good job the UK has immigrants to call on, then.

Should have let Covid rip like the West did. Massive chunk off the welfare bill.

Japan has more immigrants now than I have ever seen. Heaps of Nepalese working in the airport and for the transport companies. The construction workers here now are Caucasians but I have no idea where they are from.

Farmhands from the Philippines with pathway to residency . . . same as other sectors of agriculture . . . foreigners in higher skilled jobs as well.

Japan is a bit late in attracting potential residents, but with 100million+ Filipinos itching to get out it'll happen

^true that.

I have an ex-colleague who is now working in Japan. He's married to a half-Japanese/ half-Filipina. His wife was raised in PH (Jap dad, Fil mom) but opted for Japanese citizenship at the age of 21. (Half Japanese persons can have dual citizenship as kids but have to choose only 1 citizenship when they turn 21.) From what I know, they were college sweethearts. After college, they got married & had kids. His wife went to Japan to establish the home and he followed afterwards.

When he visited our ofc a few years ago, he was significantly thinner (but more muscular) than during his time in PH. He said that he worked at the docks/ shipyard and his work was very physical. (In PH, he had a white collar job.) Their young family chose to stay in Japan for their kids (free schooling, better health care, etc). A positive thing is that they have contributed to the population of Japan.

There are lots of half-Japanese young adults now in PH. During the 90s to early 2000s, a lot of women (and a few men) went to Japan to work as entertainers/ dancers/ singers in bars & clubs. Some of them produced half-Japanese kids - some acknowledged by their dads, some not (but that's another story). I've met several of these young adults.

The YouTuber "Let's Ask Shogo" has a good channel and he explains why the Japanese love of tradition (which is a positive) may also lead to Japan's downfall, if changes aren't made.

A few years ago, the Japanese govt allowed the hiring of Filipino nurses & caregivers but they must first pass a Japanese language test.

There are many more half-Japaneses/half-whatever young adults in Japan than in the past. Most are born with Japanese nationality. Their parents keep them in Japan for the same reasons your friends did, free school and health care, etc.

I have a female Japanese friend who married a Sherpa man and had four, count them, four children in Japan. The Japanese government gave them many benefits. Those kids are now young adults.

^yeah. I know of someone (Filipina) who gave birth in Japan. She was able to get some benefits even though she was on a student visa (graduate studies, her husband was Filipino too).

Slightly veering from the topic - there are quite a few half-Jap/Fil young adults who are not recognised by their Japanese dads. I've seen some TV shows/ stories wherein the young adults (born & raised in PH) went to Japan in search of their fathers. Some happy endings, some not - the father didn't want to recognise them or establish a relationship. Quite sad.

++++

Re: Japan, I hope they find ways to solve their population problem. The Japanese have their own weirdness, though. I've seen a news article wherein a man married a robot. Don't know if it's legal, but that struck me as odd.

Originally Posted by katie23

Don't know if it's legal, but that struck me as odd.

Stay well away from Japanese porn if you think someone marrying a robot is weird then

we sent our NZ dickie there to fill some bellies full of arms and legs - he was young enough to add a few

Originally Posted by cyrille

^Good job the UK has immigrants to call on, then.

And the fucking Welsh.