Japan tries to boost the birth rate

Is this the last chance plan for the Japanese birth rate? Last Thursday, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced a battery of proposals aimed at reversing the drop in the number of births in the archipelago which, in the words of the leader, threatens to cause the "social paralysis" of the country. Increase in family allowances for large families, free childbirth, subsidies for studies...

The catalogue of measures, which are very practical, is aimed above all at reducing the financial burden of children for an ordinary family. According to the Ministry of Education, the education of a Japanese from 3 to 18 years old, including public and private lessons, costs 18.4 million yen (123,000 euros), one of the highest amounts in the world.

"Our level of support for children will reach that of Sweden, which leads in this category among OECD countries," promises Fumio Kishida. The government wants to set aside 3500 billion yen (23 billion euros) per year from 2024...

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