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China rolled out on Monday an annual child care subsidy of 3,600 yuan (about $500) until age 3, as authorities look to spur a flagging birth rate with fewer young people choosing to have children.
The high cost of child care and education as well as job uncertainty and a slowing economy are among the concerns that have discouraged many young Chinese from getting married and starting a family.
Subsidies will start from this year, with partial subsidies for children under 3 born prior to 2025, in a policy expected to benefit more than 20 million families of toddlers and infants, the official Xinhua news agency said.
The plan is an “important national livelihood policy” and direct cash subsidies will help “reduce the cost of family childbirth and parenting,” the National Health Commission said.
Demographers and economists said while the move was positive, the amount was likely too small to incentivize people to have children.
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Authorities in China unfurled a series of “fertility friendly” measures in 2024 to tackle the coming decade’s challenge of the entry into retirement of roughly 300 million people, equivalent to almost the entire U.S. population.
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