In a stark reminder of Japan’s rapidly declining birthrate, the number of households in the country with children fell below 10 million in 2022 for the first time since comparable data became available in 1986, as reported on Tuesday.
What Happened: The number of households with children under 18 stood at 9.917 million, down 3.4 percentage points from 2019 data to a record low of 18.3 percent of the total, Kyodo News reports.
The data, released by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, also showed that the number of babies born in Japan in 2022 fell below 800,000 for the first time since records began in 1899.
See Also: Elon Musk Warns Of Population Crisis In U.S., Says Big Reckoning Coming
Why It Matters: This development underscores the severity of Japan’s population crisis, a topic that has been a focal point for both the Japanese government and international observers.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has made childcare policy a priority, unveiling measures in June to reverse the falling birthrate. However, the effectiveness of these measures remains to be seen.
Earlier this year, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, raised alarm over Japan’s population decline, warning that the rest of the world could follow. This sentiment was echoed by Prime Minister Kishida, who issued a warning about the country’s shrinking population, stating that it posed a risk to the future of civilization.
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