China’s population has started to shrink for the first time in decades. The official figures show the number of people living in the country at the end of 2022 was 1.41175 billion, a drop of 850,000 from the previous year. This follows a long period of falling birth rates and increasing life expectancy. In 1970, the average Chinese woman gave birth to six children and by 2020, that number had fallen to 1.3. This long-term decline has been largely driven by government policies such as the one-child policy, which was in place for over 35 years and only ended in 2016. The one-child policy was a controversial policy that forced most families to have only one child. It was designed to limit population growth and address the economic and social challenges of overpopulation. However, the policy has been criticized for leading to a shrinking workforce, an aging population, and a gender imbalance in favor of males. In addition to the one-child policy, other factors such as rising living costs, the increasing cost of raising children, and changing social values have contributed to the falling birth rate. With fewer working-age people and more elderly people, China faces a number of challenges. The government is trying to address these by encouraging people to have more children, but it remains to be seen whether this will be effective in reversing the trend. The falling birth rate in China has implications not only for the country itself, but also for the world as a whole. China is the most populous country in the world and its shrinking population will have a significant impact on the global economy and geopolitical landscape. It is important to understand the reasons behind China’s shrinking population and the challenges that this presents in order to develop effective policies that address this issue and ensure a sustainable future for China and the world..
Title: What’s the Real Reason China’s Population Is Shrinking?
