Government data in Japan has revealed that the birth rate in the country has reached a record low in 2024, for the ninth year straight, as young people delay marriages and the elderly population rises.
The data which was released on Thursday showed that the demographic challenges facing the world’s fourth-biggest economy, where a shrinking workforce is having to shoulder the costs of caring for a ballooning elderly population.
In 2024, 720,988 babies were born in Japan, including to foreign nationals, down five percent from 758,631 in 2023, according to preliminary health ministry data.
The number of births shrank to the lowest since the government started tracking the data in 1899. Deaths were more than double the number of births, rising 1.8 percent from 2023 to 1.62 million.
Japan’s overall population this month hit 123.54 million, down 0.46 percent from a year ago, data from the internal affairs ministry last week showed.
It is important to note that the birth data drew a sharp comparison with South Korea whose population had risen in 2024.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has said tackling the population crisis is among his top priorities.
But the high cost of education, stagnant economy and changing lifestyle have discouraged young people from starting families.
