Tag - depopulation

 
 

DEPOPULATION

Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 30, 2023
Japan to face 11 million worker shortfall by 2040, study finds
The working age population is expected to rapidly decline from 2027, according to the study by independent think tank Recruit Works Institute.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 28, 2023
Fears of societal collapse prompt new push for babies in Japan
Ideas like compulsory paternity leave, canceling student debt for people who have a baby, and ¥10 million ($76,445) payouts for a third child have been thrown around in recent weeks.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Mar 27, 2023
Support for new Fukushima Prefecture residents key to tackling depopulation
The number of people moving to the area is on the rise, but with some new arrivals then moving away again, the prefecture is faced with a growing issue.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Mar 27, 2023
COVID-era relocation trend may be fading despite work flexibility
The balance between those relocating to Tokyo and those leaving it widened again last year, accelerating the capital's population growth.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2023
Japan to raise retirement age of civil servants April 1
The retirement age is set to gradually rise until it reaches 65 in fiscal 2031 in order to address labor shortages and the country's declining population.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 23, 2023
Kyoto to introduce Japan's first empty homes tax
The new tax, set for introduction in 2026 at the earliest, aims to boost the property market amid an exodus of young people struggling to secure housing in the city.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Mar 16, 2023
South Korean marriages slide to record low in a blow for country with the world’s lowest birth rate
South Korea’s crude marriage rate — the number of marriages per 1,000 people — slid to 3.7 from 3.8 in 2021.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Longform
Mar 11, 2023
Abandoned after 3/11, Fukushima starts attracting new residents
People are moving to areas near the crippled nuclear power plant in the prefecture lured by the promise of subsidies, discount housing and work opportunities. But will these migrants stay?
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 6, 2023
Japan tackles shortage of regional assembly candidates
In 375 town and village assembly elections held as part of unified local polls in 2019, 93 saw no competitive races, with the share of uncontested seats hitting a record high of 23.3%.
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Mar 2, 2023
Redrawn electoral map raises concerns in Japan's rural areas
To rectify vote-value disparities, 10 seats will be transferred from the least populous rural areas to the most densely populated urban areas.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 26, 2023
Rural post offices begin hosting unmanned shops to help older residents
Some 3,000 of the roughly 24,000 post offices nationwide have embraced the service, stocking vegetables, daily necessities and other items.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Feb 25, 2023
In graying Japan, local governments look to enact bold child-rearing support measures
While the local government moves might appear to be an encouraging step toward improvement, they are also giving rise to concerns about regional gaps in support measures.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 22, 2023
Can money turn the tide on global fertility rates?
Japan, the poster child for aging societies, promises radical spending to boost its birthrate. That’s unlikely to fix the issue.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Longform
Jan 30, 2023
Reining in Japan’s unstoppable urban sprawl
The world’s most rapidly aging nation wants its shrinking population to concentrate in regional urban centers. However, things aren't going as planned.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 24, 2023
Japan planning to establish zones to give vacant homes new life
The number of vacant houses in Japan has grown 1.5 times over the past 20 years, with the figure only expected to rise.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Jan 19, 2023
A shrinking, aging China may have backed itself into a corner
Mounting population pressures may reveal a government that has not done enough to avoid tough choices in coming decades.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Jan 19, 2023
Make it easier to raise children, say many Chinese after population falls
China's statistics bureau just released a report that showed the population fell for the first time since 1961 amid a lack of desire by young adults to start families.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 19, 2023
Japan's government starts talks on 'unprecedented' steps to reverse birthrate decline
Kishida is expected to announce his resolve to roll out significant child care measures next week in a speech to be delivered at the beginning of a new parliamentary session.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 9, 2023
Don’t pay people to leave Tokyo. Make more Tokyos.
Trying to arrest rural depopulation, Japan wants people to quit Tokyo, its greatest metropolis. How about creating new ones instead?
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 6, 2023
Japan’s business owners can’t find successors. This man gave his away.
Nearly 60% of the country's businesses report that they have no plan for their future ownership.

Longform

Traditional folk rituals like Mizudome-no-mai (dance to stop the rain) provide a sense of agency to a population that feels largely powerless in the face of the climate crisis.
As climate extremes intensify, Japan embraces ancient weather rituals