BEIJING: Zhengzhou, a city in Central China’s Henan province, will subsidize new births in an effort to address the country’s declining population. The city will offer a one-time allowance of 2,000 yuan ($310) for families registering their first-born in the city, 5,000 yuan (about $770) for the second child and 15,000 yuan (about $2,300) for the third child.
In addition, the city will provide mothers with a minimum of two hours of breastfeeding time each day before the infant turns one year old. Both parents will also be given 10 days of paid leave each year for nursing before the baby turns three. The city will also promote the use of pain-relief labor, such as epidurals, by lowering its cost. It will also lower the cost of fertility treatments and improve the infrastructure and services at maternity wards. To address concerns about maternity leave, the city will encourage employers to adopt flexible work hours or allow new mothers to work from home. It will also provide subsidies to companies that offer nursing services.
By 2025, the city plans to ensure that every residential community has an affordable nursing center or kindergarten with at least 20 spots.
Zhengzhou, with a population of more than 12 million, is the latest Chinese city to offer subsidies to newborns. In July 2021, Panzhihua in Sichuan province began providing a monthly stipend of 500 yuan ($77) for families with a second or third child in the city until the child turns 3, pioneering the encouragement of births through monetary incentives. –The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
