It is still possible for a population in decline, even as severely as Japan’s, to recover, but it requires serious cultural reexamination.
Japan released a report last month announcing that last year, it yet again achieved record lows demographically. There were 758,631 births, an all-time low. This number is a 5.1% decrease over the previous year, and it is the largest margin of decline ever. The population is projected to fall under 100 million by 2053. There were 489,281 marriages, the lowest number since before the Second World War.
The current population is in a state of crisis, verging on a point of no return. Japan remains one of the largest populations in the world at 124,352,000 people. However, 11.4% of Japanese citizens are under the age of 15, and 29.1% of them are over the age of 65. Such a percentage difference between the youth and elderly will have startling consequences for that 11.4%.
Japan is not alone in its crisis, however, as all of East Asia is experiencing a similar trend. It has the lowest regional birthrate in the world at an average of 1.2. South Korea has an even lower birth rate than Japan at 0.72. The consequences of China’s “One China Policy” are finally catching up to it, as there is an imbalanced ratio of men to women by a margin of several million.
Opinion polls are showing that despite Japan’s unique place in the first world as a nation that still strongly promotes and upholds traditional values, the desire to create and raise a family is fading. Among adults aged 18-29, 26.2% do not want to get married; 49.4% of adults under 30 do not want to have children. This is mostly due to the financial pressure of Japan’s aging future and its unforgiving work culture.
In his book Culture Hacks: Deciphering Differences in American, Chinese, and Japanese Thinking, Richard Conrad explains how modern Japanese expectations dictate that one serves one’s occupation as the priority above one’s family.
In the corporate world of Japan, promotions and raises are granted on a seniority system, and many will not see these until their 40s. A contributing factor to Japan’s high suicide rate is work stress. By not meeting job expectations or being fired, many consider themselves failures and may take their own lives to take responsibility for that.
It is also not uncommon for employees to work overtime in Japan. The average workweek in Japan is 46.7 hours for men. While women tend to work less than full time on average at 36.3 hours, they have been pushed into the workforce in large numbers; female labor force participation is 54.9%, while it is 71.5% for men. This has put more stress on women and discouraged them from having children.
Although Japan’s population situation is bleak, as it is across the world, its extinction is not a foregone conclusion yet. Financial incentives do have net positives, as Hungary has proven, but they are not enough. The solution is incredibly difficult to pull off in Japan, but it yields high rewards: Recontextualize the current culture.
Japanese work culture is well intended, and its results are economically some of the best in the world, but as it currently stands, it is detrimental to population growth. Therefore, Japanese policymakers must convey that current work expectations are far too extreme and are not necessary for a flourishing economy.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
On top of that, promote the nuclear family as the ultimate fulfillment in life. Emphasize the quality of life and mental health benefits. Above all, explain how creating and raising a family is the most important obligation, as it most effectively serves the interests of the nation and every element of society.
If Japan does this to an institutional degree, then it may recover stronger than it ever has been. Maybe then even the world might take notice of the importance of family reflected in its example and bring tradition back to the forefront worldwide.
Parker Miller is a 2024 Washington Examiner winter fellow.