Japan’s baby boom among foreign-born population spotlights demographic timebomb

Rise in births in one sector of population is reminder of failure to persuade Japanese couples to have bigger familiesThis week brought encouraging news for Japan’s long battle to defuse its demographic timebomb: in 2024, the number of babies born to one sector of the population rose to a record of more than 22,000 – that’s about 3,000 more than the previous year and a 50% increase on a decade ago.But none of the women who answered calls – invariably issued by conservative male politicians – to have more children were Japanese. Continue reading...