No. of children falls for 25th year running in Japan
(Kyodo) _ The number of children in Japan has decreased for 25 years in a row, adding to evidence the country is experiencing an aging population and declining birthrate, an annual government survey showed Thursday.
As of April 1, the number of children aged 14 or younger totaled about 17,470,000, down 180,000 from a year earlier, for the 25th consecutive year of decline since 1982, said the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, which used prefectural government data for its numbers.
The survey is conducted every year for release around the Children's Day holiday on May 5 in Japan.
The figure represents 13.7 percent of Japan's total population, down from 13.8 percent a year before for a fresh record low and the 32nd straight yearly fall, while people aged over 65 accounted for a record-high 20.4 percent.
Of children, boys numbered 8,960,000 and girls 8,510,000.
Compared with the latest results of other countries' surveys, Japan ranks lower along with Italy, where the ratio of children to the total population was 14.2 percent, and Germany and Spain, both of which had a ratio of 14.5 percent, the ministry said.
Among countries with relatively high ratios were the Philippines with 34.7 percent and Colombia with 31.7 percent.