Last year, the number of local newborns was the lowest in over 60 years.
Expansion of childcare facilities and extension of care programs
Expert: “We need a long-term approach, not a stopgap measure”
Last year, the number of newborns in Hong Kong was 32,500, the lowest in over 60 years, and the government announced that it would provide incentives to couples with newborns to increase the birth rate.
According to Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 26th, Chief Executive John Lee recently announced legislation to provide a one-time incentive of 20,000 Hong Kong dollars (about 3,464,600 won) per newborn. This policy is scheduled to be approved by Congress at the end of this year and take effect next year.
Government officials announced that they plan to allocate an annual budget of 800 million Hong Kong dollars (about 138.584 billion won) for this purpose.
In addition, the authorities plan to implement policies such as adding 900 day care service facilities and extending after-school care programs.
However, the SCMP added that there is a negative view that this policy is not effective in increasing the birth rate.
Paul Yip Supai, a professor at the University of Hong Kong, said, “No one would give birth to a child for a one-time payment of 20,000 Hong Kong dollars (about 3,464,600 won),” adding, “It is better than not giving the subsidy at all, but it is still not enough. “He evaluated.
Marco Micelli, a woman who got married in Hong Kong last July, said, “I saw the policy (temporarily providing childbirth incentives), but I was not impressed,” and added, “Having a child costs a lot of money for decades.” .
It was also pointed out that there was a need for improvement in the workplace culture where childcare leave was not conveniently used.
“It is important to expand the period of parental leave for office workers or improve the quality of public childcare services,” said Au Young Tatchor, an assistant professor in the Department of Social Policy at Lingnan University. “We should think about a long-term approach rather than trying to quickly increase the birth rate.” said.
Dr. Felix Yip, director of the Human Resources Strategy Development Center at Baptist University, argued that “tax benefits should be provided to companies that adopt a family-friendly company culture,” and that “the period of maternity and childcare leave should also be extended.”
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.