Why cash alone won’t solve Japan’s baby deficit

Record low birth rates in Japan have led Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to allocate as much as 3.6 trillion yen (US$22.3 billion) per annum in an attempt to reverse the trend. But fertility-boosting policy measures have historically had limited success due to the country’s conservative family values a...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Takao, Yasuo
Format: Journal Article
Published: Crawford School of Public Policy in the ANU College of Asia & the Pacific at The Australian National University 2024
Online Access:https://eastasiaforum.org/quarterly/
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/95554
Description
Summary:Record low birth rates in Japan have led Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to allocate as much as 3.6 trillion yen (US$22.3 billion) per annum in an attempt to reverse the trend. But fertility-boosting policy measures have historically had limited success due to the country’s conservative family values and dwindling interest in marriage and childrearing among young people. An effective response to the crisis will require the Japanese government to adapt its policies to reflect evolving societal norms and to better support diverse family structures.