Eww. Would have been better off raising your kids to have self respect for what they want for themselves in life and love and to teach them how to go out and find it in others instead of drumming in resignation and docility for the sake of the exam marathon leading from birth to shuushoku katsudou just to become a shakaijin, as if you can’t even be a member of society if you’re not a wife or a seishain. But it’s probably a little late for that now. If the gov wants to stem the population decline, they’ve got make a society people want to live in.
Nothing could go wrong, right?
The government would have to collaborate with companies to increase salaries. Although, Japan’s labour system favours lifetime/stable employment over dynamic change like in the United States. Which is one of the reasons employees are seldomly sacked here than say in the United States.
The issue Japan faces isn’t a population crises, so the suggestion of immigration doesn’t follow. What Japan faces is low birth rates, but Japan is actually doing better than her neighbours or even Singapore (considering similar cultures). Japan has a higher birth rate than China, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore (https://www.economist.com/asia/2022/05/19/asias-advanced-economies-now-have-lower-birth-rates-than-japan).
Another reason many purport as the reason for Japan’s low birth is “gender equality”. However, Japan has a slightly lower (less than a percent) birth rate than Nordic countries – self acclaimed gender equal countries. Which means gender equality doesn’t lead to higher birth rates like a South Korean lady wrote in the NYT few weeks ago. In fact, I dare say “gender equality” actually leads to lower birth rates. https://twitter.com/Birdyword/status/1615241561159380995?s=20&t=AXWn9oq-p80Jyi4zTridHw
Another purported solution is opening the door to immigration. However, that too wouldn’t solve the problem as immigration leads to a higher population, not higher birth rates. Germany opened to Turks more than thirty years ago, yet the same Germany has low birth rates today. Sweden, France and the United Kingdom too. The United States, the world’s most immigrant friendly country, also suffers from low birth rates. On the other hand, immigrating to Japan is easier, faster and the MOST affordable amongst all developed countries. Japan is the only country in the developed world where immigrants can become naturalised citizens without being permanent residents, all within five years. Additionally, Japan has lots of immigrants from China, South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand etc. So, the tale that Japan doesn’t take in immigrants is entirely mendacious.
What then are the solutions?
– Live with it. This is because ACROSS the rich world, birth rates are dwindling. The richer a society is, the lower the birth rate. It’s a given. In my home country, the southern part has lower birth rate than the northern region. Literally because the south is way prosperous than the north. Even amongst Muslims in the south, they’ve fewer children than their Northern counterparts. Prosperity leads to fewer children.
– Raise the retirement age, decentralise Tokyo (literally force companies to move outside the Kanto region. Offer huge incentives to entrepreneurs to set up offices and factories outside the Kanto region. In extreme cases, increase taxes on companies based in Tokyo and surrounding regions).
– Force companies to increase salaries. I understand this goes against the lifetime employment system, but to comfortably raise a family with say two children, couples need higher wages.
It’s a multifaceted issue, but there are no easy solutions except Japan wants to emulate Israel (the only country in the rich world with the highest birth rate) by deploying religion. But last I checked, Japan doesn’t do religion the Abrahamic way.
Anything to avoid the elephant in the room of a work culture that basically prohibits men from being fathers and tries to dispose of women when they give birth.
Nah let’s gear up some AI match making. That’ll fix things.
4 comments
Eww. Would have been better off raising your kids to have self respect for what they want for themselves in life and love and to teach them how to go out and find it in others instead of drumming in resignation and docility for the sake of the exam marathon leading from birth to shuushoku katsudou just to become a shakaijin, as if you can’t even be a member of society if you’re not a wife or a seishain. But it’s probably a little late for that now. If the gov wants to stem the population decline, they’ve got make a society people want to live in.
Nothing could go wrong, right?
The government would have to collaborate with companies to increase salaries. Although, Japan’s labour system favours lifetime/stable employment over dynamic change like in the United States. Which is one of the reasons employees are seldomly sacked here than say in the United States.
The issue Japan faces isn’t a population crises, so the suggestion of immigration doesn’t follow. What Japan faces is low birth rates, but Japan is actually doing better than her neighbours or even Singapore (considering similar cultures). Japan has a higher birth rate than China, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore (https://www.economist.com/asia/2022/05/19/asias-advanced-economies-now-have-lower-birth-rates-than-japan).
Another reason many purport as the reason for Japan’s low birth is “gender equality”. However, Japan has a slightly lower (less than a percent) birth rate than Nordic countries – self acclaimed gender equal countries. Which means gender equality doesn’t lead to higher birth rates like a South Korean lady wrote in the NYT few weeks ago. In fact, I dare say “gender equality” actually leads to lower birth rates.
https://twitter.com/Birdyword/status/1615241561159380995?s=20&t=AXWn9oq-p80Jyi4zTridHw
Another purported solution is opening the door to immigration. However, that too wouldn’t solve the problem as immigration leads to a higher population, not higher birth rates. Germany opened to Turks more than thirty years ago, yet the same Germany has low birth rates today. Sweden, France and the United Kingdom too. The United States, the world’s most immigrant friendly country, also suffers from low birth rates. On the other hand, immigrating to Japan is easier, faster and the MOST affordable amongst all developed countries. Japan is the only country in the developed world where immigrants can become naturalised citizens without being permanent residents, all within five years. Additionally, Japan has lots of immigrants from China, South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand etc. So, the tale that Japan doesn’t take in immigrants is entirely mendacious.
What then are the solutions?
– Live with it. This is because ACROSS the rich world, birth rates are dwindling. The richer a society is, the lower the birth rate. It’s a given. In my home country, the southern part has lower birth rate than the northern region. Literally because the south is way prosperous than the north. Even amongst Muslims in the south, they’ve fewer children than their Northern counterparts. Prosperity leads to fewer children.
– Raise the retirement age, decentralise Tokyo (literally force companies to move outside the Kanto region. Offer huge incentives to entrepreneurs to set up offices and factories outside the Kanto region. In extreme cases, increase taxes on companies based in Tokyo and surrounding regions).
– Force companies to increase salaries. I understand this goes against the lifetime employment system, but to comfortably raise a family with say two children, couples need higher wages.
It’s a multifaceted issue, but there are no easy solutions except Japan wants to emulate Israel (the only country in the rich world with the highest birth rate) by deploying religion. But last I checked, Japan doesn’t do religion the Abrahamic way.
Anything to avoid the elephant in the room of a work culture that basically prohibits men from being fathers and tries to dispose of women when they give birth.
Nah let’s gear up some AI match making. That’ll fix things.