he new government in Japan aims for the birth rate: 5000 euros per couple for those who decide to have children.
In Japan there are fewer and fewer children. To stop the gradual aging of the population, the Japanese government has studied an incentive plan to facilitate marriages and increase the birth rate. The land of the rising sun in recent years is one of the countries in the world where fewer children are born. On the other hand, life expectancy is among the highest.
IN THIS ARTICLE
- The Japanese Government’s birth plan
- Fertility rate in Japan
- The birth rate in Italy
- Bonuses for families in Italy
The Japanese Government’s birth plan
The benefits implemented from next year include a bonus of around € 5,000, made available to couples under 40 years of age and who together do not have an income exceeding around € 43,000.
As expected by the new premier Yoshihide Suga, the bonus will be financed for two thirds by the government, while the rest will have to be paid by the municipalities, fearful for the municipal coffers in times of crisis.
READ ALSO:All the concessions in Italy for families
The fertility rate in Japan
The fertility rate of Japanese women is just 1.36: below the minimum threshold of 2.07, considered necessary to guarantee generational turnover.
The 865,000 births in the country counted in the last census represent an all-time low; the number of children in Japan fell for the 39th consecutive year, settling at the lowest levels since 1950.
To date, 29% of single Japanese men between the ages of 25 and 34, and 17.8% of women consider lack of funds as the main reason for not taking the step and getting married. At this rate – say the sociologists – also thanks to the generational metamorphosis and lower social pressures – in addition to greater precariousness in the world of work, the average age of couples who decide to marry and have children will be destined to rise to values that will not allow an exchange of the population. Minors under the age of 15, in fact, make up just 12% of the inhabitants of the archipelago, in stark contrast to the over 65 age group – which represents 28.7% of the total.
Also according to scholars in 2040 the situation will worsen even more with the percentage of elderly people over 65 that will reach 35.3% of the total population.
What is the birth rate
The birth rate is the ratio between the number of live births of the year and the average amount of the resident population, multiplied by 1,000.
And in Italy? How is the birth rate situation?
For years , Istat has been reporting the steady decline in births in Italy. According to the latest report (which takes the year 2019 as a reference, but was published in February 2029) the average number of children per woman is 1.29 (same value as in 2018), while the average age at childbirth rose, reaching the 32-year mark in 2019 for the second year .
In the last two years, in particular, a reduction of about 180 thousand units is estimated among resident women of childbearing age (conventionally 15-49 years). In addition to this factor, it should then be recalled that the specific fertility rates by age of the mother continue to show a substantial decline in the young age (up to about 30 years) and a progressive increase in the older ones (after 30). The average age at childbirth
reached 32.1 years, also because in the meantime the fertility expressed by women 35-39 years old has exceeded that of 25-29 years old. Not only that, women over 40 have more children than young women under 20, while the gap with 20-24 year olds has been almost completely absorbed.
The bonuses provided in Italy for families
The 2020 budget law provided for different forms of aid for families and for maternity, re-presenting various bonuses already used in the past.
And in the future ? The intention, in general, is to create a new family bonus (with the budget law of next year, 2021) that will replace the Mother’s bonus tomorrow, Baby bonus , Nursery bonus, Baby sitter bonus.
