SHRINKING BIRTH RATES ACCELERATE CHINA’S DEMOGRAPHIC CRISIS

While Xi Jinping may profess confidence that “the East is rising and the West is declining,” China’s birth rates are rapidly diminishing. Recently released official statistics suggest continued deepening of looming demographic crises that the government has struggled to avert through various attempts to incentivize marriage and procreation. The endurance of restrictive COVID-19 policies and a floundering economy compound China’s challenge of fostering a more sustainable demography. At the South China Morning Post, Luna Sun reported that over a third of China’s provinces saw their populations shrink last year.

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