China Population Growth Falls to Lowest Rate in Decades
Voice of America
China says its population grew to 1.41 billion in the decade ending in 2020, its lowest rate of growth since imposing a strict one child per family policy in the 1980s.
The National Bureau of Statistics announced Tuesday that China added 72 million people between 2010 and 2020, an increase of 5.38%, with annual growth averaging 0.53%, a decline of 0.04% rate from the previous decade. The world’s most populous nation is facing a worrying trend of declining working-age citizens coupled with a rising number of aging retirees, a trend brought on by the government’s mandatory birth limits as a means of controlling population growth. Chinese leaders eased those limits in 2015, but the birth rate has continued its steady decline due to the huge cost of living, a lack of decent housing and people more focused on maintaining their careers than starting families.Journalists lay down their equipment as they protest the latest draft revision of the broadcasting law, which they consider a threat to press freedom, in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, on May 27, 2024. Journalists protest the latest draft revision of the broadcasting law, which they consider a threat to press freedom, in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, on May 27, 2024.
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In this screen grab, Kenyan President William Ruto speaks in an exclusive interview with VOA Swahili Service reporter Hubbah Abdi in Washington on Friday, May 24, 2024. In this screen grab, Kenyan President William Ruto speaks in an exclusive interview with VOA Swahili Service reporter Hubbah Abdi in Washington on Friday, May 24, 2024.
A demonstrator argues with police officers during an opposition protest of the foreign influence bill at the Parliamentary building in Tbilisi, Georgia, on May 28, 2024. The Georgian parliament overrode a presidential veto of the measure, which has sparked wide protests. Demonstrators gather at the Parliamentary building during a protest against the foreign influence bill in Tbilisi, Georgia, on May 28, 2024. The Georgian parliament overrode a presidential veto of the legislation.
Villagers move a rock as part of search efforts following a devastating landslide, in Yambali village, in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea, May 27, 2024. (Juho Valta/UNDP Papua New Guinea via AP) Devastation caused by a landslide is seen in Yambali village, in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea, May 27, 2024. (Juho Valta/UNDP Papua New Guinea via AP)