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China's top health authority said on Thursday that it will support
efforts by the country's northeastern region to fend off challenges
posed by low birthrates and the dwindling population by experimenting in
fully relaxing the family planning policy. The National Health Commission said that Northeast China－encompassing
Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning provinces－can put forward trial plans
to encourage local families to have more than two children, after
extensive research and analysis. Expert research will focus on the policy's effects on local economic
development, social stability, resource and environmental strategy and
the public services sector, the commission said. The region also needs to "gauge changes in local population following
the policy shift, work on other supportive policies and appraise
related societal risks", it added. The comments were released on the commission's website in response to
a proposal from a deputy to the National People's Congress, China's top
legislative body. The proposal suggested that the northeastern area be the first in the
country to further loosen family planning rules, in a bid to halt the
population decline. China introduced a universal second-child policy that allows all
families to have two children in 2016. However, the number of new births
per year has remained stagnant, fueling concerns about a rapidly aging
workforce. The situation is most pronounced in the three northeastern provinces,
which have recorded some of the lowest annual fertility rates,
contributing to a drop in their overall population in recent years. In 2019, the number of permanent residents in Northeast China went
down by 427,000 from the previous year to about 108 million, data from
the provincial governments shows. The population data for 2020 has not
been released. The commission said the region's population decline has been caused
by a series of factors related to its regional economic model,
industrial structure and social policies. "For instance, as local resources have dried up and China is
upgrading its industrial development, a large number of young people
there are unable to find satisfactory local jobs and have moved to areas
where economic growth is better and salaries are higher," it said. The policy relaxation has so far failed to boost local families' willingness to have more children. As a result, the commission said changing family planning policies are expected to have a limited impact on fertility decisions. "Economic burdens, a lack of nursery care and the career development
of females have become significant factors in swaying birthrates in the
region," it said. "In order to raise fertility levels, it is crucial to focus on the
public's demands, resolve weaknesses in basic public services and
address practical concerns on giving birth and rearing children," it
added. Lu Jiehua, a population studies professor at Peking University, told
Beijing Daily that it would be "very difficult" to reverse the downward
population trend in Northeast China. Loosening family planning rules is
likely to yield limited outcomes, but the move will nevertheless set an
example to the rest of the country.
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