Pro- and anti-natal policies

Anti-natalist policy: China

Why?

• -Huge rate of population growth led to a series of famines in the mid 20th century

What is the policy?

• -One child policy which encourages couples to have only one child and penalise those who have more.

How does it work?

• -Incentives given for having just one child policy: cash bonuses, longer maternity leave, better childcare, prefential access to housing.
• -Young people persuaded to delay marriage
• -Pressure for abortion of 'unauthorised' pregnancies
• -Easy access to contraception and encouragement of post-pregnancy sterilisation
• -'Forced' sterilisation of couples who have more than one child

Has it been successful?

• The birth rate in China has fallen since 1979, and the rate of population growth is now 0.7%
• There have been negative impacts too - due to a traditional preference for boys, large numbers of female babies have ended up homeless or in the orphanages, and in some cases…