The financial crisis hit parenthood plans: greying of the European baby boomers
The Vienna Institute of Demography sounds the alarm; The fertility rate has fallen sharply in countries most affected by the financial crisis.
In order for the economy of a country to be supported, the minimum fertility rate required is 2.1 children per woman. Fewer than this rate leads to an ageing population and respectively to economic downturn. An example for this is China where there are 4 elderly people for every 1 working person.
The European crisis did not only affect the unemployment or the purchasing power. It also has a direct and dramatic impact on the birth rate in Greece, Portugal, Spain, Ireland. The lack of future perspective, the uncertainty and the augmentation of the unemployment are pushing people to reduce or delay their parenthood plans.
The Austrian researchers studied fertility in 22 European countries between 2008 and 2011. Shockingly, in 15 of them fertility rates have been declining and this disturbing trend keeps on continuing.
“The European data shows a clear correlation between rising unemployment and declining birth rates,” says Tomas Sobotka.
Spain, being the emblematic case, shows the highest rate of unemployment in Europe with its over 26% unemployment rate. The Spanish suffered a decline in the number of births in 2009, a year after the deterioration of the labor market. Its fertility rate, after rising from 1.23 in 2000 to 1.46 in 2008, fell to 1.36 in 2011.
Two exceptions exist: Germany that never rose her fertility rate and France the fertility rate of which rose from 1.8 to 2 in ten years, despite the crisis, thanks to their generous family policy.
Still, the future looks brighter as the world starts to wake up from the financial distress. The takeaway is that growing families are the seeds of entire economies-- of which we all rely. Conceive Plus heeds the call and is here to support growing families.
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