Explainer | Now or never: why is Hong Kong scrambling to battle record-low birth rates and how are residents reacting?
- Expert welcomes new measures but warns some may only have limited effect on boosting birth rate
- The HK$20,000 cash bonus for newborns is not compatible with the ‘substantial’ child-raising expenses, 28-year-old expecting mother says
Hong Kong’s leader has rolled out a series of measures to tackle the city’s record-low birth rate in his annual policy address, offering a cash bonus of HK$20,000 (US$2,557) for each newborn and easier access to subsidised housing for families with children.
Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu announced the initiatives on Wednesday in a bid to halt an almost 40 per cent decline over four years, with the number of babies dropping to 32,500 in 2022 from 52,900 in 2019.
The city’s total fertility rate, the number of children a woman is expected to have over her lifetime, has also plunged to 0.8, the lowest in the world.
The Post looks at how attractive the incentives are and whether they will bring more bundles of joy to the rapidly ageing population.
1. What did babies born before Wednesday miss?
From Wednesday, each baby born in Hong Kong will be eligible for a HK$20,000 cash incentive, if at least one of the parents is a permanent resident, regardless of marital status.
The policy will remain in place for three years, after which it will be reviewed.
