Editorial | Holistic review key to encouraging couples to have more babies
Affordable childcare, workplace culture and a network of support services are crucial factors before Hong Kong parents consider having a second or third offspring
Hong Kong’s birth rate has fallen to one of the world’s lowest. Interviews with more than 1,200 first-time mothers aged 18 to 45 might throw some light on the reasons why.
The survey by the Society for the Protection of Children showed that less than one-third of the mothers wanted another child to give the first a sibling, while one-third did not, and the remainder were undecided.
Reasons given for reluctance included the financial burden, the stress of parenting, crowded living conditions, and the challenges of balancing work and childcare.
This comes nearly a year after the government introduced a HK$20,000 baby bonus, to encourage couples to have children and combat ageing of the population.
The cash handout was the centrepiece of a wider initiative to boost the birth rate. It remains to be seen whether such a one-off payment makes much difference over the longer term.
Singapore is not necessarily comparable. But the city state found increased paid maternity and paternity leave more effective in encouraging couples to have babies.
