(LifeSiteNews) — Taiwan’s birthrate is approaching a record low of only 0.87 children per woman.
As Newsweek reported, the country’s population declined for the 23rd consecutive month in November this year, reporting almost twice as many deaths as births. Taiwan is among the countries with the lowest fertility rates in the world, with an average of 0.89 children per woman. However, according to projections by the National Development Council, the nation is on track to fall to 0.87, matching historic lows recorded in 2022 and 2023.
Taiwan’s fertility rate is only slightly higher than South Korea’s, which has the lowest rate at 0.75.
Elon Musk, who has repeatedly warned about population collapse and low birthrates worldwide, reacted to the news on X, saying: “Population collapse continues to accelerate.”
The population of Taiwan declined by 96,710 people (0.41 percent) compared to November 2024, according to the figures released by the Ministry of the Interior’s Department of Household Registration. Across the island, there were 7,946 births in that time, compared to 14,771 deaths.
The National Development Council of Taiwan wrote the following about the crisis on its website: “As women continue to delay their first marriage, this also postpones the age of first childbearing and further shortens their reproductive period. Delaying childbearing reduces both the likelihood and the desire to have children due to physiological and physical limitations, making it challenging for the birth rate to recover.”
Chen Shih-chung, a former health minister of the country, warned in an article for CommonWealth Magazine in May: “Both international research and local experience show that cash subsidies are not ineffective – but they are insufficient. The government may believe it is offering adequate support, but many families still face heavy financial burdens. Policy must evolve from easing the burden, to eliminating it – or even reversing it.”
Taiwan’s government recently approved a subsidy package aimed at increasing the birth rate, which includes a cash allowance of 100,000 New Taiwan dollars (approximately $3,200) per child. However, with stagnant wages and a rising cost of living, as well as the fundamental cultural and ideological problems most modern countries face regarding having children, it remains to be seen if these measures will be effective.
