Taiwan says it is ‘difficult’ to reverse declining birth rate

By Anadolu staff

ANKARA (AA) - The decline in Taiwan's birth rate is "difficult" to reverse, as in many developed countries, the National Development Council (NDC) said Thursday, according to the Taipei-based Central News Agency.

NDC chief Liu Chin-ching cited in his report to parliament the difficulty in finding a spouse and the burden of caring for parents in old age as the two key factors preventing Taiwanese youths from having children.

The report termed the population issue "serious," which will affect future taxes, consumption and the workforce.

Liu said, unlike Western countries, the vast majority of children are born to married couples -- 96.25% in 2023-- in Taiwan, meaning that Taiwanese usually marry before having kids.

Responding to questions from lawmakers about the failure of government policies to boost the birth rate, Liu said in the last 16 years, successive governments recognized the population issue as a "national security crisis" that cannot be solved in a short period.

According to data from the Ministry of the Interior's Department of Household Registration, the total fertility rate for women between 15-49 has plummeted steadily from 1.06% in 2018 to 0.865% in 2023.

The birthrate-related programs would require an estimated budget of NT$50 billion ($1.56 billion) to be effective, he added.​​​​​​​

Moreover, for an even more comprehensive set of measures, the budget would need to increase to NT$100 billion annually, Liu maintained

The report estimates that Taiwan's population, which has dropped every year since 2020, will fall from its current 23.4 million to 14.97 million by 2070, with the youth figure falling by 1.71 million; the working age population reducing by 9.2 million and the elderly population increasing 2.48 million.​​​​​​​