Last Year, China Recorded 10,517,600 First Marriages
50 Private Kindergartens Closed This Year in Linquan County
Last year, the number of first-time marriages in China hit another record low.
Lowest in 37 Years... Number of First-Time Marriages in China Last Year '10,517,600'
According to the '2023 Statistical Yearbook' released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China on the 20th, the number of first-time marriages in China last year was 10,517,600, a decrease of 1.06 million compared to the previous year, which was already the lowest on record.
This is the first time in 37 years since related statistics began to be compiled in 1985 that the number of first-time marriages has fallen below 11 million.
The number of first-time marriages in China peaked at 23,859,600 in 2013 and has been steadily declining every year since. It has plummeted by 55.9% in just nine years.
Experts pointed out that the decline in first-time marriages is directly leading to a decrease in population.
Last year, the number of newborns in China was 9.56 million, falling below 10 million annually for the first time in 73 years since 1949.
The annual number of newborns in China peaked at 18.83 million in 2016 and has since decreased by an average of 1.5 million per year.
Although local governments provide childbirth incentives and implement various policies such as university entrance exam benefits, housing purchase support, and extended maternity leave, these measures seem insufficient to prevent young people from avoiding childbirth and marriage.
Kindergartens in China Also Closing One After Another... "Some May Give Up Sending Their Children to Kindergarten"
According to 21st Century Business Herald, in Linquan County, Anhui Province (population 2.29 million), the most populous county among 1,600 counties in China, 50 private kindergartens closed down over the course of this year.
The newspaper noted that the scale of closures accounts for 11.8% of all kindergartens in Linquan County.
In Longhaigu District, Zhangzhou City, Fujian Province, 17 kindergartens applied for closure in September alone, and in Haikou City, Hainan Province, 33 kindergartens ceased operations this month.
According to Chinese statistics, 5,610 kindergartens nationwide closed last year.
The media pointed out, "Due to kindergarten closures, parents have no choice but to send their children to kindergartens located far away, which will incur more time and costs," adding, "Some families may even give up sending their children to kindergarten."
Meanwhile, youth unemployment (ages 16?27) is considered a major Achilles' heel in China. After youth unemployment (ages 16?24) hit a record high of 21.3% in June, Chinese authorities have stopped releasing the figures starting from July.
In response, Chinese netizens criticized, "Most young people have no choice but to indefinitely postpone marriage due to the burden of securing financial resources when starting a family," and "Industrial workers are ignored in the current marriage and dating market."
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