, Columnist
Paying People to Make Babies Is a Losing Strategy
Japan, the poster child for aging society, promises radical spending to boost its birthrate.
Where are the babies?
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Japan offers a textbook example of how falling fertility rates are creating an aging society. It’s a global phenomenon, with women marrying later in life and couples choosing to invest more money and time in fewer and fewer kids. But government spending on increased family allowances is unlikely to reverse the demographic trend, argues Gearoid Reidy.