News Brief
By Lyu Weiyi
Nationally, various subsidies have been granted to families with two or three children to encourage childbirth. Hangzhou is offering a subsidy of 5,000 yuan and 20,000 yuan, respectively, to families with a second or third child registered in Hangzhou this year.
These subsidies follow China's policy of allowing all couples to have three children, which is expected to improve the demographic structure and ease the burden caused by China's rapidly aging population, which may exacerbate labor shortages and economy sustainability as a common problem faced by most aging countries all over the world.
Like many developed countries, China is facing a steady decline in birth rate with the rapid economic and social development. According to the results of the once-a-decade census released last year, China has found itself in a deepening demographic crunch.
Since the implementation of the two-children policy, there has been a significant effect on the birth rate in China. For instance, the proportion of second children surpasses that of first children in 2017. To further boost the fertility rate, China has introduced the three-children policy.
Raising children indeed requires considerable time and money. However, the subsidy policy of Hangzhou will help alleviate the financial worries of parents. In addition, more policies to encourage childbirth will be introduced one after another, such as better child-care facilities, more maternity benefits and lower education costs. The rights of women in employment will also be protected, which is a strong support for the three-children policy.