South Korea registered a decline in its population for the first time in its history as it recorded more deaths than births in 2020. The country reported 275,815 births in 2020, a 10.65 per cent drop from the previous year. But 307,764 people died in 2020, a 3.1 per cent increase compared to 2019 statistics, according to the Ministry of Interior and Safety’s census, released Sunday, January 3, 2021. The census results were reported by Yonhap, South Korean key news agency. As of December 31, 2020, South Korea had over 51.8 million people, a decrease of 20,838 people compared to the population number of 2019, the census showed. The data suggest major challenges facing policymakers in Asia’s fourth-biggest economy – after China, Japan, and India - arising from a rapidly ageing population and one of the lowest fertility rates in the developed world. The elderly aged 60 and above make up 24 per cent of the country’s population and the number of working-age people continue to drop. This situation implies that public finances are likely to come under increasing pressure resulting from addressing old age needs such as pension and the costs associated with healthcare and shortages of workforce. The number of deaths in the country had been rising from 2011 to 2018 before dropping in 2019 and then bouncing back up in 2020. The population had increased in each of the previous 10 years, though the growth rate had been gradually decreasing from 1.49 per cent in 2010 to just 0.05 per cent by 2019. Amid the rapidly declining birth rate, the government needs to undertake fundamental changes to its relevant policies, the interior ministry noted. The report also showed households getting smaller, shrinking to an average of just 2.24 people. People living alone now account for close to 40 per cent of the total population, suggesting that the focus of welfare and housing policies needs to change, the report indicated. Underlying factors Reasons cited for the low birth rates in South Korea include that women struggle to achieve a balance between work and other life demands. Others are high real estate prices, which are blamed for discouraging young couples, as raising children at ease would require owning a home. Measures to tackle the issue Last month, South Korea President Moon Jae-in formed a special committee that has already launched a set of policies aimed at tackling the low birth rate, with focus on cash incentives for families who give birth. They include a “congratulatory allowance” for pregnant women of Won 1 million (about $920), each. Also, under the plan, from 2022, it is reported that every child born will receive a cash bonus of 2 million won ( about $1,850) to help cover prenatal expenses, on top of a monthly payout of 300,000 won handed out until the baby turns one. The incentive will increase to 500,000 won every month from 2025.
