The number of births in Japan has passed in 2024 below 700,000 for the first time since the beginning of statistics in 1899, the government announced on Wednesday, June 4.
Japan registered 686,061 births in 2024 – 41,227 less than in 2023, according to published data. This is the ninth consecutive year of decrease in births, in a context of the population that ages.
The Japanese prime minister, Shigeru ishiba, described the situation as “silent emergency” and promised favorable measures for families, as greater flexibility in working hours, to reverse the trend.
Two million births per year between 1971 and 1974
The data published on Wednesday by the Ministry of Health also reveal that the fertility rate is the average number of children who are supposed to have a woman during her life, fell to a record level of 1.15.
The Ministry said that the number of deaths (1.6 million) has reached more than double that of births, increasing by 1.9% compared to 2023.
Shigeru Ishiba also requested the revitalization of rural regions, where aging and decline communities are becoming increasingly isolated.
In more than 20,000 territories in Japan, most residents are 65 years old or more, according to the Ministry of Interior.
This situation poses increasingly important problems in the archipelago, which has 124 million inhabitants, since it generates labor shortage in many sectors of activities and questions, long -term sustainability of public health, health insurance and pension systems.
Japan had experienced a baby boom between 1971 and 1974 with about two million births per year, but the high cost of education, stagnation of the economy and the evolution of lifestyle have discouraged young people to start a family.
Source: BFM TV
