Korea shattered its own fertility record in 2021 when the expected number of babies per woman slipped to 0.81 from 0.84 a year earlier. - AFP
SEOUL (Bloomberg): South Korea plans to provide every family with a newborn child a monthly allowance of 1 million won (US$740), in its latest move to encourage more births and try to address the world’s lowest fertility rate.
The handout will begin next year at a level of 700,000 won a month and then rise to the full amount in 2024, according to a budget proposal unveiled this week. Once the child turns one, the stipend will be reduced by half and run for a further year.
