How to improve fertility? Experts: Promote gender equality and promote family development

Source: People's Daily News

Beijing, 20 Jan (People's Daily Online) -- Today, the National Health Commission held a press conference on the progress and experience and practices of implementing the "Decision of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on Optimizing the Birth Policy and Promoting the Long-term Balanced Development of the Population."

At the meeting, Song Jian, deputy director of the Population and Development Research Center of Chinese Min University, introduced that most countries and regions in the world are currently facing the challenge of low fertility rates, and various measures have been taken to deal with low fertility rates. It can be roughly divided into three categories: the first is time support measures, including maternity leave, parental leave, paternity leave and other related leave systems. The second category is financial support, which includes allowances for children, allowances for families and various care allowances for parents, as well as policies for tax breaks. The third category is service support. Service support policies include community childcare, public childcare institutions, home help, after-school care, and more.

As for how to learn from the experience of developed countries, including Europe, Japan and South Korea, in dealing with low fertility rates, Song Jian said that due to the different economic, political and cultural backgrounds of various countries, the focus of policies is different, and the effects are also different. "If you learn from China, you can find that these policies that promote gender equality, balance working-family conflicts, and promote family development are all helpful for the improvement of fertility levels."

"At present, the mainland is deeply studying and learning from the successful experience of the world, because China's fertility rate has also dropped below the replacement level since 1992, and the policy of developing inclusive childcare that we are now adopting, extending maternity leave and setting parental leave in the revised population and family planning regulations in various places, which are all references to the experience of other countries." However, China's population is a very large volume, China also has its own unique national conditions, some experience can not be copied, so we must take measures in line with the national conditions, especially from the local to explore their own experience. Song Jian said.