Introduction
Korea’s population problem is becoming increasingly serious. Korea’s birth rate has been declining and has now reached a critical juncture. They will face a variety of difficulties if they do not fix this phenomenon. The Korean government is always working to address this trend by developing new options.
What is the population issue in South Korea?
Since 1983, Korea’s overall fertility rate has been less than 2.1 children per woman. The declining total fertility rate exacerbates Korea’s demographic downward trend. Korea’s average age was quite young. Until 2005, the proportion of young people under the age of 14 who did not work was the OECD average. However, in less than 20 years, young people will make up a smaller proportion of the Korean population than in all other countries except Japan, and Korea is expected to exceed Japan this year in terms of the lowest percentage of young people in the world (Stangarone, 2022).
Why is the fertility rate decreasing so dramatically in South Korea?
According to research, rising daycare expenses may be to blame for the nation’s declining birth rate. According to Confucian ideals, education is a key means of achieving economic wealth and social standing. This viewpoint has resulted in “enthusiasm for education” in Korea.
Korean parents believe that providing their children with the resources they require to get high grades and gain an educational advantage over their peers is essential. As a result, parents may enroll their children in academies where they will learn a variety of courses like arithmetic, Korean, English, and so on. These academies are extremely expensive and raise child support payments. Because of the enormous cost of raising a child, some parents have only one child or do not have any at all.
Another reason for the low birth rate in Korea is the high cost of housing. Korea is one of the most expensive housing markets in the world, and housing prices have increased dramatically recently. Studies have shown that people who live in expensive houses tend to have children later than those who live in inexpensive houses.
The economic uncertainty faced by young people is the third reason. It is easy to see in Korea that the ratio of non-standard, contract, and unstable work has increased significantly since the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Young men feel great difficulty playing a stable adult economic role, and the proportion of people who delay it or even postpone marriage has increased. Since the birth rate occurs within the context of marriage in Korea, the decrease in the number of people getting married indicates that the birth rate also falls. Married people may delay or give up giving birth if they are not financially stable (Choi, 2022).
Problems of a falling birth rate
An increase in the proportion of retired people
The most noticeable characteristic of the low birth rate is the increase in the elderly population, aged 65 or older, and the creation of an inverted population pyramid. This has a significant impact on government spending, healthcare, and tax revenue.
The pressure on government spending
As the population grows older, the government will have to spend more money on health care and pensions. However, the young population paying income tax is decreasing. This situation is troubling to the government, which may impose higher taxes as the number of people who can work decreases. If the declining proportion of the population is not large and economic growth is strong, this aging population will be able to afford it. However, we cannot rely on high growth because there are concerns that the economy is entering a long-term recession due to the low growth rate.
Reduced innovation
Young people are more likely to become innovators and entrepreneurs and take risks to create new businesses and technologies. The fewer young people, the less likely the potential “brain pool” will be, which is relatively unlikely to provide ideas for improving our lives (Pettinger, 2021).
Conclusion
It is not easy for young people to gain financial stability, while Korean society now needs a lot of money to raise children. Therefore, economic reasons are the biggest reason why the birth rate is contributing to the gradual decline. Currently, the South Korean government has come up with policies for instant compensation, such as giving money when giving birth to a child. However, rather than these policies providing instant benefits, we should strive to increase the fertility rate by creating policies that can help raise children in the long run.
References
Stangarone, T. (2022). South Korea’s Demographic Trends Continue to Decline. [online] thediplomat.com. Available at: https://thediplomat.com/2022/08/south-koreas-demographic-trends-continue-to-decline/ [Accessed 20 March. 2023].
Choi, J.H. (2022). Why Does South Korea Have the Lowest Fertility in the World? | Psychology Today. [online] www.psychologytoday.com. Available at: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/social-fabric/202208/why-does-south-korea-have-the-lowest-fertility-in-the-world [Accessed 20 March. 2023].
Pettinger, T. (2021). Impact of falling birth rates. [online] Economics Help. Available at: https://www.economicshelp.org/blog/166908/development/impact-of-falling-birth-rates/ [Accessed 20 March. 2023].
