A bonus to boost the birth rate in Tokyo?

TOKYO: 100,000 yen that's the amount of a potential bonus that couples could soon be awarded for the birth of a child in Tokyo. A proposal that aims to raise the low birth rate in Japan's capital, the country's most expensive city, at a time when financial instability linked to the global pandemic could weigh even more heavily on family planning intentions.

How can the state encourage couples to have a child in the midst of a global pandemic and all the uncertainty associated with that? This is the problem currently facing the city of Tokyo, which could offer a financial incentive to citizens in order to boost a birth rate that fell even further in 2020, the year marked by the start of the health crisis.

The idea is to give 100,000 yen (nearly US$1000) per birth to all couples who have one or more children during the next two years, the proposed duration of this initiative, as revealed by several Japanese media including Japan Today. The sum was not chosen randomly, since it represents the difference between the average hospital costs observed in Tokyo compared to the rest of Japan.

However, couples interested in this proposal should be aware that they will not receive the 100,000 yen directly. A credit of this amount would be given to them to be exchanged for childcare services or items.

If approved, this proposal could come into effect as early as this spring in the Japanese capital. There are still a few months to convince Tokyo residents, whose online comments reveal a certain skepticism regarding the proposed sum, whose value is generally regarded as having a negligible impact on offsetting the financial costs of raising a child in Japan's most expensive city.