South Korea: Deaths outnumber births in 2019

According to Statistics Korea, there were almost 1 million first-time and newly married couples recorded in the country from 2015 and 2019. More than 40 per cent of these couples had no children.

South Korea became the country with the world’s lowest total fertility rate after it reached 0.92 in 2019, while the average rate among OECD countries was 1.65.

However, in the third quarter of this year, South Korea’s rate declined even further to 0.84.

In an effort to increase fertility rate in the country, the government will reward each child birth with 2 million won (US$1,826) starting in 2022.

At the same time, a monthly 300,000 won incentive will be given to the couples until the baby turns 1.

They also will get a maximum three million won in monthly coverage during their three-month parental leaves.

Since the 2000s, South Korea has been struggling with a low birthrate, leading some researchers to suggest that if current population trends hold, the country's population will shrink to approximately 28 million population towards the end of the 21st century.

In 2018, fertility in South Korea became again a topic of international debate after only 26,500 babies were born in October and an estimated of 325,000 babies in the year, causing the country to have the lowest birth rate in the world. (ILKHA)