snoop1130 Posted 14 hours ago Posted 14 hours ago File photo for reference only In a remarkable demographic shift, Thailand has reported fewer than 500,000 births in a single year for the first time in 75 years. In 2024, only 462,240 babies were born, a significant drop from the previous year's 519,000. Mahidol University’s expert, Associate Professor Chalermpol Chamchan, emphasised that this marks the fourth consecutive year where mortalities surpassed births, underscoring a demographic dilemma. The total fertility rate in Thailand has plummeted to a concerning 1.0, below Japan's 1.2, aligning more closely with nations like South Korea and Singapore known for their low birth rates. Projections are grim, forecasting a dramatic population decrease from 66 million to a mere 40 million over the next 50 years. Correspondingly, the workforce could dwindle by 15 million, raising alarms over future labour shortages and economic ramifications. Efforts by the government, such as the campaign 'Have Children for the Nation,' have yet to substantially sway public sentiment. A recent survey revealed that only 35.8% of respondents definitely intend to have children. An additional 29.9% are ambivalent, presenting an opportunity for targeted policies to bolster this number to over 60%, according to Chalermpol. Contributing to this trend are economic hardships, environmental pollution, and deteriorating living conditions, dissuading prospective parents. The Interior Ministry's data corroborate these findings; Thailand's population saw a minor decline of 0.06% by the end of 2023, decreasing by 37,860 individuals. Thailand now ranks among the globe's top three countries grappling with the steepest birth rate declines, boasting an 81% drop over the last 74 years. This significant decrease has even put Thailand ahead of Japan, highlighting a pressing global concern of contracting populations. As the country navigates these challenges, strategic policymaking and societal shifts are imperative to address the burgeoning demographic crisis. -- 2025-01-17
Tropicalevo Posted 12 hours ago Posted 12 hours ago When you are poor and have very little hope, guess what. You cannot afford to have kids.
CygnusX1 Posted 11 hours ago Posted 11 hours ago This problem (if it really is a problem) should eventually correct itself. Women who want several babies will, unsurprisingly, produce more offspring than women who don’t want babies. Their daughters will tend to inherit their mothers’ desire for babies, and so the proportion of women in the population who want several babies will increase over the generations, and after enough time, we’ll be back to the old problem of the population increasing too steeply. In any case, you don’t have to be a rabid Greenie to realise that an economic system that relies on a continuous increase in the population is no different from a Ponzi scheme, in that it will eventually run out of resources, just as every Ponzi scheme runs out of new investors. 1
Pouatchee Posted 10 hours ago Posted 10 hours ago old news. as always, if they loosened the visa and green cards for foreigners I am sure many of us would be happy to help boost the birth rate... with our superior genes it would also help strengthen the gene pool and help build a brighter future for this country. I for one, would gladly support a few willing young ladies...
DonniePeverley Posted 8 hours ago Posted 8 hours ago The population is pushed into servicing cheap mass tourism at an early age. They aren't even able to get into education to further themselves, as they seek short term gain for cheap tourism. 1
Rampant Rabbit Posted 6 hours ago Posted 6 hours ago instead of sticking a helmet on yer knob stick one on yer head might help
hotchilli Posted 2 hours ago Posted 2 hours ago Birth rates align with the economy, if people can afford children they will have them, if the pockets are empty, the birth rate falls.
watchcat Posted 2 hours ago Posted 2 hours ago 12 hours ago, snoop1130 said: Thailand has reported fewer than 500,000 births in a single year for the first time in 75 years. In 2024, only 462,240 babies were born, a significant drop from the previous year's 519,000. Mahidol University’s expert, Associate Professor Chalermpol Chamchan, emphasised that this marks the fourth consecutive year where mortalities surpassed births, underscoring a demographic dilemma. Again.....
Muhendis Posted 1 hour ago Posted 1 hour ago This is scary stuff for governments worldwide because it reduces tax income which is needed to support an increasing aging population. It's rather like an inverted boomer time.
JimHuaHin Posted 1 hour ago Posted 1 hour ago Many will disagree, but here goes. The main groups wanting increased population are the war mongers and (big) business. The former need more soldiers as cannon fodder to achieve their expansionists plans, eg Putin and Xi. While the latter need more consumers to increase profits. The Earth has limited resources and can only hold a finite population of all life forms. Increasing retirement age, and thus the working-age population, can help fund the care of the elderly, as would the introduction of new technology (the technologies exist, but have not been widely applied).. 1
J Branche Posted 43 minutes ago Posted 43 minutes ago GOing to try to explain what little I understand from the Thai Family perspective. Most Thai's do Not earn a living wage, or are in perpetual debt (it may swap from car, house, school, medical) Some Thai families the baby is raised until X months when it no longer benefits from mother's milk. The baby is then given from daughter to mother or boyfriend/husbands mother to raise while the birth mother goes to work. Any baby should be thought of as I/we need to work X more hours a week. I forfeit X hours of free time. These people have dreams like all of us, owning house and land, car, motorbike, going on vacation and traveling. They Want to look successful in the local surrounding communities eyes. When only a small percentage of Thai's earn a living wage, Why would they want to have More babies?
CygnusX1 Posted 40 minutes ago Posted 40 minutes ago Back in 1930, the famous economist John Maynard Keynes predicted that by 2030, the average person would only need to work 15 hours a week. Given the spectacular advances in labour saving technologies since 1930, together with large scale participation of women in the workforce, if we could somehow bring him to the present day, he’d surely be mystified as to our worries about the labour force in a gradually falling population being insufficient to maintain a prosperous society .
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