Japan’s Annual Birth Rate Falls To Another Record Low

The number of newborns in Japan is decreasing faster than projected, with annual births falling to yet another record low last year, according to government data released recently, Mari Yamaguchi reported for the Associated Press (AP).

The current figure is about one-quarter of the peak of 2.7 million births in 1949 during the postwar baby boom.

The Health Ministry said 686,061 babies were born in Japan in 2024, a drop of 5.7% from the previous year and the first time the number of births has fallen below 700,000 since records began in 1899. It marks the 16th straight year of decline.

The current figure is about one-quarter of the peak of 2.7 million births in 1949 during the postwar baby boom.

This data, in a country with a rapidly aging and shrinking population, adds to growing concern about the sustainability of Japan’s economy and national security—especially as the government seeks to increase defense spending.

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has described the demographic trend as “a silent emergency” and has pledged to promote more flexible working environments and other measures to help married couples balance work and parenting—particularly in rural areas where traditional family expectations tend to be more conservative and harder on women.