In the eastern hemisphere, Japan faces a similar problem. Japan’s fertility rate hit an all-time low of approximately 1.3 children per woman in 2005. Acknowledging the demographic and economic crisis that this sub-replacement fertility rate could cause, Japan’s government decided to monetarily incentivize reproduction...and it worked. In 2015, fertility hit its highest rate in 21 years.
However, at roughly 1.5 children per woman, the fertility rate still falls short of the necessary replacement rate. Financial incentives aside, many other factors — such as career opportunity costs and the still unequal division of household labor — greatly influence women’s reproductive decisions.
