Prioritizing public housing for new parents and encouraging matchmaking events are among four ways that population growth could be spurred, Minister of Health and Welfare Chiu Tai-yuan (邱泰源) said yesterday on the sidelines of the International Conference on Advancing Quality in Integrative Medicine in Taipei.
Ministry of the Interior data released on Friday showed that last month was the 19th consecutive month that Taiwan’s population has declined.
The population was 23,337,936 as of the end of last month, 8,805 fewer than the previous month, the data showed.
Photo: CNA
Population decline would affect societal, economic and national security development, as well as the nation’s healthcare, while a low birthrate also leads to fewer care providers, so development of the elderly care industry and the long-care service 3.0 program have been discussed a lot recently, Chiu said.
The government is addressing the problem in four ways, he said.
First is to reduce the burden of raising children, he said, adding that the government offers a monthly childcare allowance for children under two of at least NT$5,000 and a childcare subsidy of at least NT$13,000, while temporary care services are increasing.
Second is to improve mother-child health, which includes increasing to 14 the number of prenatal checkups funded by the government, promoting a designated pediatrician system, and increasing early intervention support and subsidies for with children with developmental delays and disabilities, he said.
The third is a cross-ministerial effort to boost public funding for childcare facilities for children aged two to six, to prioritize public housing for new parents, as well as offer parental leave and other allowances for parents, he said.
Fourth is to increase people’s willingness to get married and have children, Chiu said.
Many women only want to have children after achieving career goals, but that increases reliance on government-funded assisted reproductive technology due to people wanting to get pregnant later in life, he said, adding that the situation is not ideal, but such people should still be helped.
The government also encourages matchmaking events, he said.
The Taiwan Medical Association, the Taiwan Dental Association, the Taiwan Bar Association and other groups regularly promote blood donations, so they should do the same for meetup events to encourage dating and marriage, he added.
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