Why is the birth rate low in Korea? (2023)

Why does Korea have the lowest birth rate?

Analysts state that South Korea's current low birth rates are caused by the country's high economic inequality; including the high cost of living, low wages for an OECD member country, lack of job opportunities, as well as rising housing unaffordability.

In addition there are socio-economic factors that have led to women and couples delaying having children. Lack of affordable housing, flexible and part-time career posts for women and affordable and publicly funded (free) child care have contributed to the current low fertility/birth rates.

South Korea Breaks Record for World's Lowest Fertility Rate, Again. The data reflects societal problems both present and future, including young adults' economic anxiety and a looming shortage of workers to pay into the pension system.

Many young people in South Korea have chosen not to marry or have children, citing a change of views toward a marriage and family life and uncertainty of their future. Nov. 23, 2022, at 9:33 p.m.

South Korea has broken its own record for the world's lowest fertility rate, according to official figures released Wednesday, as the country struggles to reverse its years-long trend of declining births.

Birth rate highs and lows

On the other side of the scale, the CIA estimates Monaco has the lowest birth rate in the world at 6.63 average annual births per 1,000 people per year.

Causes of population decline

The size and demographics of the population change when: fewer children are born; families with children move to larger towns and cities; young and better-educated people move to larger towns and cities.

South Korea has the lowest fertility rate in the world. The vast majority of young couples in South Korea end up having only one child because of high childcare costs. Young couples also delay having children because of expensive housing.

This sustained decline has negative implications for economic growth in the long run as it shrinks the future pool of eligible workers on the peninsula.

Why is Korean population decreasing?

For South Korea, its population decline is largely attributed to its chronically lowest fertility rate ― 0.81 births per woman ― compared to the global average of 2.32 as of 2021. The figure for Korea is the world's second-lowest after Hong Kong's 0.75.

A two-child policy is a government-imposed limit of two children allowed per family or the payment of government subsidies only to the first two children. A two child policy has previously been used in several countries including Iran, Singapore, and Vietnam.

South Korea plans to provide every family with a newborn child a monthly allowance of 1 million won ($740), in its latest move to encourage more births and try to address the world's lowest fertility rate.

5.4 percent, or 140,000 of 2.6 million newborns brought in Korea last year were multiples. That includes 136,000 twins and 500 triplets, taking 5.2 and 0.2 percent of the total babies, respectively.

TOKYO -- Fertility rates rose in 80% of major developed nations last year but fell in Japan and South Korea. Many experts blame the two countries' persistently declining birthrates on the lack of gender equality in sharing housework and parental duties.

United Nations projections are also included through the year 2100. The current birth rate for South Korea in 2022 is 6.902 births per 1000 people, a 1.9% decline from 2021. The birth rate for South Korea in 2021 was 7.036 births per 1000 people, a 1.86% decline from 2020.

With an average of 4.6 births per woman, Afghanistan had the highest fertility rate throughout the Asia-Pacific region in 2021. Pakistan and Papua New Guinea followed with the second and third highest fertility rates, respectively. In contrast, South Korea and Hong Kong had the lowest fertility rates across the region.

A woman's peak reproductive years are between the late teens and late 20s. By age 30, fertility (the ability to get pregnant) starts to decline. This decline becomes more rapid once you reach your mid-30s. By 45, fertility has declined so much that getting pregnant naturally is unlikely for most women.

The UN estimates that around 385,000 babies are born each day around the world (140 million a year). This number will remain relatively stable in the 50 years from 2020 to 2070.

How can we increase birth rate?

More generous maternity leave, for instance, seems to raise birth rates, as do simple cash payments to new parents. Subsidising childcare (or helping older people retire more easily, so they can help look after their grandchildren) has a similar effect.

Factors generally associated with decreased fertility include wealth, education, female labor participation, urban residence, intelligence, increased female age, women's rights, access to family planning services and (to a lesser degree) increased male age.

Men struggle to get good jobs, prompting them to forgo marriage — and people in Japan rarely have children outside of marriage. The number of marriages fell for the second year in a row in 2021, to 501,116, according to the Asahi Shimbun, a leading Japanese newspaper.

Population change is governed by the balance between birth rates and death rates. If the birth rate stays the same and the death rate decreases, then population numbers will grow. If the birth rate increases and the death rate stays the same, then population will also grow.

The problem with low fertility is that it reduces population size not at all ages but only among the young. Low fertility produces an age structure that creates a momentum for future population decline, a situation that must be stopped at some point if the population is to be demographically sustainable.

The Korean conflict is an ongoing conflict based on the division of Korea between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) and South Korea (Republic of Korea), both of which claim to be the sole legitimate government of all of Korea.

The marriage rule was codified as Article 809 in 1957. It read as follows: Article 809 [Prohibition of marriage between parties whose surname and ancestral home are common] (1): A marriage may not be allowed between blood relatives, if both surname and its origin are common to the parties.

In some jurisdictions, cousin marriage is legally prohibited: for example, in mainland China, Taiwan, North Korea, South Korea, the Philippines and 24 of the 50 United States. The laws of many jurisdictions set out the degree of consanguinity prohibited among sexual relations and marriage parties.

The country's statistics agency Statistics Korea said about five out of 100 babies are multiples, bringing the rate to 5.4 per cent. Data showed that 140,000 of 2.6 million newborns born in South Korea last year were multiples, including 136,000 twins and 500 triplets.

How many kids can you have in China?

Three-child policy (Chinese: 三孩政策; pinyin: Sānhái Zhèngcè), whereby a couple can have three children, was a family planning policy in the People's Republic of China.

; fertility rate hit record-low of 0.81 in 2021.

During the Joseon era, some believed that fraternal twins were bad luck. One of the twins had to be eliminated and it was usually the girl, since a woman was considered less worthy and certainly could not inherit the throne.

Africa has a high rate of twins born naturally from two separate eggs, and according to the study 80% of twins are now born either in Africa or Asia.

For the last 70 years, fertility rates have decreased worldwide, with a total 50% decline. Reasons include women's empowerment in education and the workforce, lower child mortality and the increased cost of raising children.

A shrinking workforce is a major factor in the decline of Korea's potential growth rate. The working-age population peaked at 37.3 million in 2020 and is set to fall by almost half by 2070, according to Statistics Korea.

Conversely, in developed countries with higher standards of living it costs much more money to bring up children which discourages large families. This was the case in the UK in the 19^th century.