Beijing - China is considering the elimination of its controversial one-child policy in response to an aging population and a gender imbalance created by sex-selective abortion, Reuters reports. The present policy usually limits families to one child, or two children if they live in the countryside. “We want incrementally to have this change, Vice Minister of the National Population and Family Planning Commission Zhao Baige told reporters in a Beijing talk about possible changes to the policy.
I cannot answer at what time or how, but this has become a big issue among decision makers, Zhao added. The attitude is to do the studies, to consider it responsibly and to set it up systematically. China is the worlds most populous country. Its average fertility rate has dropped from 5.8 children per woman in the 1970s to 1.8 children per woman today, below the replacement rate of 2.1.
Experts have warned that its ageing population could cause severe social problems as the elderly come to outnumber the working population. The policy has also caused gender disparity from the selective abortion of girls, as male children are preferred for traditional and economic reasons.
The gender ratio in China is still close to 120 boys for every 100 girls. Chinas population could grow to 1.5 billion by 2033.