On Monday, China announced that married couples can have up to three children, altering the existing two-child limit to three after recent data revealed a steep decline in births, reported Reuters.
The existing two-child limit failed to provide a sustainable swell of births due to the high cost of having children in China’s cities. Last year, the nation’s fertility rate was 1.3 children per woman, well below the 2.1 rate required for replacement level.
According to Xinhua news, the new three-child policy will be accompanied by “supportive measures, which will be conducive to improving our country’s population structure, fulfilling the country’s strategy of actively coping with an ageing population.” The new measures include lower educational costs, improved tax and housing assistance, benefits for working women, and education for young people on “marriage and love.”