MOSCOW, October 30 (RIA Novosti) — China may face a significant demographic challenge in the future as the softening of China’s “one child policy” has not lead to any substantial changes in terms of the country’s rising population, putting the country at risk of becoming an aging nation.
"The latest change will probably amount to a very small blip," British expert Dr. Therese Hesketh said in an interview with Newsweek, adding that the estimated population growth of one million persons will not significantly impact the country.
According to Business Insider, only a few young families are now willing to have a second child, as China eases its one-child restriction policy.
The “one-child” policy was introduced in China at the end of the 1970s in order to control birth rates and mitigate overpopulation, as reported by BBC. In 2013, Chinese authorities passed a resolution alleviating tough population control measures and permitting couples to have two children, as long as at least one of the parents is an only child.
"Many Chinese like this policy change as it gives them a choice," Chinese anthropologist Hong Zhang told Newsweek.
However, as the latest surveys show, the softening of the family planning policy has not lead to the estimated population growth of 2 million a year, as only 700,000 of 11 million potential parents have asked for consent by the end of summer 2014, Business Insider reported.
The problem of “ageing population” is also currently affecting other countries of the Pacific Rim, with Japan having the highest percentage of elderly people in the world. According to Japan Times, elderly people represent 25% of Japan’s population and their numbers are continuing to grow, while the working population has significantly decreased, putting the country’s economy at risk of recession.
