InfoAnda - Asia's baby shortage sets demographic timebomb ticking

Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case
Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They

Taiwan denies boycotting Australian film festival
Thursday, August 6, 2009

AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e

Merkel's support dips, regional ally resigns International
Thursday, September 3, 2009

By Sarah Marsh and Noah Barkin

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German

Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who

Asian markets mixed after Wall Street rally
Wednesday, March 18, 2009

By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an

Security agents kill three behind Moscow metro blasts | | 13 May 2010
Senate votes to strip down patent reform bill | 2 March 2011
Titans preserve perfect record with NFL win over Packers | 2 November 2008

New film explores legacy of Hitler's top director | Entertainment | | 30 April 2009

Forum Views () Forum Replies ()

Read more with google mobile : Asia's baby shortage sets demographic timebomb ticking

Yahoo! My Yahoo! Mail More Yahoo! Services Account Options New User? Sign Up Sign In Help Yahoo! Search web search Home Singapore Asia Pacific World Business Entertainment Sports Technology Weekend Edition Australia China India Indonesia Japan Malaysia Philippines Thailand Vietnam Asia's baby shortage sets demographic timebomb ticking AFP - Friday, December 24 Send IM Story Print TOKYO (AFP) - – East Asia's booming economies have for years been the envy of the world, but a shortfall in one crucial area -- babies -- threatens to render yesterday's tigers toothless. Some of the world's lowest birth rates look set to slash labour forces in Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan, where fewer workers will support more retirees and their ballooning health care and pension costs. Shuffling along in the vanguard of ageing Asia is Japan, whose population started slowly shrinking three years ago, and where almost a quarter of people are over 65 while children make up just 13 percent. On current trends, Japan's population of 127 million will by 2055 shrivel to 90 million, its level when it kicked off its post-war boom in 1955, warns the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research. Asian population giant China may still be near its prime, with armies of young rural workers flocking to its factories. But, thanks to the 30-year-old one-child policy, its demographic timebomb is also ticking. "Over the past 50 years, economic and social modernization in Asia has been accompanied by a remarkable drop in birth rates," the Hawaii-based think-tank the East-West Centre says in a new research paper. "Gains in education, employment and living standards, combined with dramatic breakthroughs in health and family-planning technology, have led to lower fertility in every country of the region." Falling fertility rates are a common trend for societies as they grow richer, and many European nations are also below the level needed to keep a population stable -- about 2.1 children per woman over her lifetime. While in traditional rural societies children tend to take over the farm and care for their elderly parents, in modern, urban societies, many couples, with better access to birth control, see offspring as an unaffordable luxury. China now has 1.6 births per woman, Singapore has 1.2 and South Korea has slightly fewer than 1.1. Taiwan has just 1.03 births per woman. One way to counter declining populations is to allow more immigration -- but governments from Singapore to Tokyo have been reluctant to do so. At the same time Singaporeans, who have turned their city-state into an Asian hub of commerce and service industries, have long been famously disinclined to procreate. The government has for years put on match-making events for university graduates on the assumption that Singapore's best and brightest could be coaxed into producing a generation of brainy offspring. While that model in social engineering has failed to bring a baby boom, bureaucrats across the region have sought to tweak policies and tax codes to get more couples in the mood, but seldom with great success. At the core of the problem, say analysts, have been gender attitudes steeped in Confucian traditions -- with men still expecting their wives to handle the childcare and household chores that may not top a modern woman's wishlist. Kim Hye-Young, researcher at the Korea Women's Development Institute, said: "The big problem is that South Korean women, compared to men, have too much to lose when getting married in this system. "This reality makes marriage, let alone having a child, look like a very unattractive option in South Korea, perhaps far more so than in other countries," she said. In Japan, where women remain woefully under-represented in corporate boardrooms, falling pregnant still all too often spells career death. "Women are voting with their wombs, refraining from having children because the opportunity costs are so high and rigid employment policies make many of them choose between raising a family or pursuing a career," writes Jeff Kingston, director of Asian Studies at Temple University in Tokyo. Other factors also play a role, he writes in a new book on contemporary Japan: many young people -- unlike their jobs-for-life fathers -- now skip between temporary jobs and lack the financial security to start a family. Compounding the geriatric trend in Japan are long life expectancies -- a world-record 86.44 years for women and 79.59 years for men. This means the social welfare burden is growing for a government that already has a debt-to-GDP ration nearing 200 percent, the rich world's highest. The centre-left government in power since last year has introduced family friendly policies, from child payments to free school tuition, to ease the burden on parents struggling to raise kids in their cramped apartments. High-tech Japan has also built robots to help with elderly care, while electronics giants have tapped a huge market for elderly-friendly gadgets, such as mobile phones with extra-large displays and buttons. In the long run, Japan needs to take fundamental steps to deal with the growing strain of a greying society, warns ratings agency Standard and Poor's. "Barring structural changes in old-age related government spending, a rapidly greying society will lift expenditures," it warns. "This, in turn, threatens to weaken the sovereign ratings on Japan in the long term." Polls in Asia indicate that most people are aware of the threat that silent playgrounds and empty classrooms spell for their greying societies, but remain unlikely to rush to their bedrooms to help avert societal doom. In Taiwan, a survey of childless workers last month found that 87 percent thought the declining birth rate was a serious problem, and two thirds worried the result would be a society unable to look after its elderly. Still, few said they would start making babies to save their island, according to the survey by human resources service 104 Job Bank. Almost two thirds said they did not intend to have any children in future. The East-West Centre paper concluded that it "seems likely that fertility in East Asian societies will remain low -- at least for the foreseeable future -- as women make difficult choices between careers and motherhood." Recommend Send IM Story Print Related Articles N.Korea 'ready for sacred war' as South holds major drill AFP - 1 hour 25 minutes ago Taliban commander killed in Pakistan: security officials AFP - 2 hours 4 minutes ago Santa is at home in Hong Kong AFP - Friday, December 24 Asia's baby shortage sets demographic timebomb ticking AFP - Friday, December 24 War rhetoric rises between North and South Korea AP - Friday, December 24 News Search Top Stories Bomb blasts hit Swiss, Chilean embassies in Rome US economy hobbles toward brighter 2011 UN demands halt to Ivory Coast killings US third quarter GDP growth revised higher British economy suffers growth downgrades More Top Stories » ADVERTISEMENT Most Popular Most Viewed Most Recommended Fears grow of euro-style debt crisis in US states More Most Viewed » Defiant Obama defends tax cuts, eyes 2012 More Most Recommended » Elsewhere on Yahoo! Financial news on Yahoo! Finance Stars and latest movies Best travel destinations More on Yahoo! News Home Singapore Asia Pacific World Business Entertainment Sports Technology Weekend Edition Subscribe to our news feeds Top StoriesMy Yahoo!RSS » More news feeds | What are news feeds? Also on Yahoo! Answers Groups Mail Messenger Mobile Travel Finance Movies Sports Games » All Yahoo! Services Site Highlights Singapore Full Coverage Most Popular Entertainment Photos Yahoo! News Network Copyright © 2010 Yahoo! Southeast Asia Pte. Ltd. (Co. Reg. No. 199700735D). All Rights Reserved. Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | Community | Intellectual Property Rights Policy | Help

Other News on Friday, 24 December 2010
Foreign troop deaths in Afghan war top 700 in 2010
Skype recovering after major outage
UN demands halt to Ivory Coast killings
Israel, Hamas want to reduce Gaza Strip tension
News
US economy hobbles toward brighter 2011
Samsung to make system chips for Toshiba: source
Women press for more jobs in new Iraqi cabinet
Viacom sells developer of Rock Band video games
Egypt court reduces militant's sentence to 50 years
News
US regulator sets conditions for NBC-Comcast deal
NATO strike on local convoy kills 2, say officials
Venezuela security forces break up student protest |
News
Samsung eyes $43 billion in 2020 sales from new areas
Israel, Hamas want to reduce Gaza Strip tension: U.N. |
Iraqi general gunned down in Baghdad
Verigy gets $908 million sweetened Advantest bid
News
Italy approves hotly contested university reform |
'Suicide bomber' kills policeman in Afghanistan
Five million Britons to shop online on Xmas Day
News
Flu kills 27 in Britain, spreading in Europe |
Rovi to buy Sonic for $720 million, widens digital
Afghan officials claim 2 killed in NATO strike
Santa is at home in Hong Kong
Samsung to make system chips for Toshiba: report
Asia's baby shortage sets demographic timebomb ticking
India police hunt men said to plan Mumbai attack
Prime minister of Laos resigns
News
War rhetoric rises between North and South Korea
U.N. rights body unites, condemns Ivory Coast violence
German Christmas market brings festive cheer
Jakarta beefs up security with 7,200 policemen
EU, US threaten to review ties with Belarus
Finger bone genome reveals new human ancestor
News
US-ENTERTAINMENT Summary
Skype recovering but still down for 20 percent of users |
A Minute With: Nicole Kidman working on "Rabbit Hole"
Viacom sells developer of Rock Band video games |
Iceland's "scary" troll Santas herald Christmas fear
Expedia makes American Air fares harder to find |
Spice hunter: the second life of a Breton chef
Samsung to make system chips for Toshiba: source |
News
Christmas: an ordinary day for Zimbabwe's poor
Verigy gets $908 million sweetened Advantest bid |
Spansion loses U.S. chip patent fight with Samsung |
Michelle Williams still asks why Heath Ledger died |
A Minute With: Nicole Kidman working on Rabbit Hole |
Christmas cheer, Afghan-style, for US troops
Russia to approve nuclear treaty with US
North Korea may have new atom test to boost heir: South |
TomTom to increase staff, expects more car deals: paper
Pope talks of God's 'surprises' in Christmas message
Hollywood stars Johansson, Reynolds divorce
U.S. defends permits for deals in sanctioned nations
Online holiday sales up 15.4 percent: SpendingPulse
WikiLeaks boss says 'high chance' of US jail killing
Bomb blasts hit Swiss, Chilean embassies in Rome
Viacom sells 'Rock Band' creator Harmonix
Iranian leader urges 'cooperation' at Istanbul nuclear talks
Ex-Google exec's venture firm to raise $100 million: source
Obama to regulate carbon from power plants
Sudan, Darfur rebels clash during ceasefire talks
Irish government nationalises Allied Irish Banks
Haiti urged to halt cholera anti-voodoo lynchings |
Skype recovering, still down for 20 percent
US economy hobbles toward brighter 2011
Cuba to free two more political prisoners: church |
Ratification of START nuclear treaty hailed
IBM offers glimpse into the future
Spansion loses U.S. chip patent fight with Samsung
US jobless claims fall near year lows
Bomb explodes at Chilean embassy in Rome
Expedia makes American Air fares harder to find
Bomb wounds Swiss embassy worker in Rome
Spansion loses U.S. chip patent fight with Samsung
Merkel party fined 1.2 mln
Samsung to make system chips for Toshiba: source
Obama, Medvedev discuss START in Thursday call
Samsung eyes $43 billion in 2020 sales from new areas
N.Korea may stage atom test to boost heir: think-tank
Want Kate's engagement ring? Just three bucks in China
Three soldiers, 24 militants killed in NW Pakistan
Ex-Google exec's venture firm to raise $100 million: source |
Beijing traffic official resigns amid gridlock woes
Stephen Baldwin sues Kevin Costner in BP Oil drama
Online holiday sales up 15.4 percent: SpendingPulse |
China pledges regular patrols near disputed islands
Wal-Mart invests in Chinese e-commerce firm |
"Gulliver's Travels" tests Jack Black's appeal
Epic disaster or blockbuster? "Spider-Man" hangs on
Japan, Turkey sign memorandum on nuclear cooperation
Film producer sues over "Black Swan"
Onions push inflation up in India
New Justin Bieber song "Ride" is for another artist
Samsung says in contract chip deal with Toshiba |
"Little Fockers" tops Wednesday box office
Hangover remedies, Korean style
China investment abroad to top 50 bn dlrs in 2010
TomTom to increase staff, expects more car deals: paper |
Led Zeppelin drummer's son plays to similar beat
Thai property developer Amari wins contract for Maldives resort
China minister warns EU debt crisis could turn 'chronic'
Rapper Nelly moves forward in life by giving back
Michelle Williams still asks why Heath Ledger died
Seoul shares fall 0.4 pct as autos, airlines weigh
Pakistan to sell T-bills in 6-day repo
Vietnam shipbuilder Vinashin defaults on loan: report
Taiwan c.bank says has not tightened forex mkt rules
Suzuki to supply small cars for Mitsubishi Motors
Seoul shares fall 0.4 pct as autos, airlines weigh
Crude oil mixed in Asian trade
Japan to approve record budget: reports
Epic disaster or blockbuster? Spider-Man hangs on |
Gulliver's Travels tests Jack Black's appeal |
Little Fockers tops Wednesday box office |
Stephen Baldwin sues Kevin Costner in BP Oil drama |
New Justin Bieber song Ride is for another artist |
Rapper Nelly moves forward in life by giving back |
Led Zeppelin drummer's son plays to similar beat |
Film producer sues over Black Swan |
Iranian officer captured in Afghanistan: NATO
Heavy snow strands Christmas travelers in Europe |
Naked Aphrodite on Cyprus passport causes stir
Fujitsu to lift cloud computing investment next year
Pope hails God's 'surprises' in Christmas message
Russia pushes toward approval of nuclear arms pact |
Iraqi kills daughter who wanted to be suicide bomber |
Toshiba overhauls chip operations with Samsung and Sony deals
Hamas says committed to mutual truce with Israel |
West African leaders meet on Ivory Coast crisis |
US pays Pakistan more than 600 mln dlrs for support
Pakistan clashes kill 11 troops, 24 militants |
Delhi Games chief defiant after police raids
Suspected Afghan weapons smuggler not Iranian guard |
Laos' ex-PM 'lacked strong support'
Ukraine's Tymoshenko faces second criminal probe |
Pakistan clashes kill 11 troops
Kenyans believe ICC suspects will be convicted: poll |
China bars political dissident access to lawyers
Indian doctor gets life for aiding Maoists
St. Petersburg icicle patrol fights winter hazards
Holiday boyfriend put up for auction in China
Thailand bans film about transgender father
Indonesia set to release Vietnamese fishermen
Philippine Airlines loses wage row with union
Thailand bans 'immoral' transgender film
Ex-Google exec's venture firm to raise $100 million: source |
Fujitsu to lift cloud computing investment next year |
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time
AMD to Start Production of piledriver
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights

USD EUR - 1 year graph		BlogMeter 1.01