Ministry of Health proposes that couples be allowed to decide the number of children

The proposal was stated by the Ministry of Health in the Draft Ordinance amending Article 10 of the Population Ordinance. February 26. In which, each couple and individual decides on the time of birth, number of children and the interval between births.

This change is intended to address the low fertility rate and the significant difference in fertility rates between regions and groups. According to the Ministry of Health, Vietnam's fertility rate is among the top 5 lowest in Southeast Asia. Specifically, the national fertility rate is trending below the replacement level, from 2.11 children per woman in 2021 to 2.01 in 2022. This index continues to decrease to 1.96 children per woman in 2023 and 1.91 in 2024 - the lowest in history and is forecast to continue to decrease in the following years.

According to forecasts, if the birth rate continues to decline, Vietnam will end its golden population period by 2039, the working-age population will peak in 2042, and the population will begin to grow negatively after 2054. At that time, the consequences of a prolonged low birth rate will lead to a shortage of labor force, a decline in population size, accelerated population aging, and negative impacts on socio-economic development.

Over the past two decades, urban fertility has fallen below the replacement level, hovering around 1.7 - 1.8 children per woman; rural fertility has always been above the replacement level, at 2.2 - 2.3 children per woman. However, in 2023, rural fertility will fall to 2.07 children, below the replacement level, the lowest level ever.

Regarding the cause, the Ministry of Health believes that some Party committees and authorities have not fully recognized the difficulty, complexity and long-term nature of population work, especially the shift in policy focus from family planning to population and development. Many places are still heavily influenced by gender stereotypes. The Population Ordinance issued since 2003 has many new issues that have not been regulated yet, there are gaps, implementation is not strict, institutionalization is not complete, including restrictions on the right to decide on the number of children.

Experts say the reason for the low birth rate is that young people tend to marry late, have children late, or even not want to have children. This trend comes from many causes, but mainly from economic pressure and the cost of raising children, especially in the context of high living costs and unstable incomes.

Faced with birth rate issues, especially low birth rate, the Ministry of Health considers this an urgent issue that must be resolved soon. In recent times, many policies have been abolished or proposed to encourage birth, the latest beingPolitburo requests no disciplinary action against party members who have a third childMany financial support and welfare policies for families with children, such as childbirth allowances; housing support, preferential home loan support for families with young children... are also being considered.

The decline in fertility is not only a problem in Vietnam but also a common concern of many countries, including China, Korea, Japan, etc. Currently, many countries have issued policies and legal regulations to solve this problem. Specifically, there are 55 governments applying policies to encourage increased fertility and 19 cabinets focusing on maintaining the current fertility rate.

The main groups of measures include: improving maternity leave, granting fathers parental leave, unpaid leave with job protection, reducing working hours or introducing part-time work.

In addition, financial incentives such as childbirth bonuses, tax incentives, monthly cash allowances for children, and support for renting or buying a house are also implemented.