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No, it was not due to nuclear incidents. The more a country develops, the lower the birth rate. Every country in the world that has an HDI index of at least 0.850 has a birthrate either around or below replacement level. Every, or most, countries in the world listed under medium or low human development usually have the highest birth rates. Japan is simply experiencing the consequence of being the 12th most developed country in the world. No, the government does not need to do anything to stop the trend. If anything, Japan needs less people, not more.
japan has 160 million people....i think a decline in birthrate would be a good thing...people sleep in cubicles there for god's sake because there isnt any room
Japan has 127 million people (very high, but not quite 160) on a very small and compact island. The first half of this century is going to have many countries turn VERY gray, with Japan being one of the most gray. A lot of people want to comment on whether or not this is a good or bad thing, but we really don't even know the ramifications of a change like this in society because it has never happened before. It could lead to an economic collapse because of the less demand that an age structure like that would produce. It could lead to great prosperity because there would be less people to share resources. We just don't know! Japan has been pretty stagnant though for many many years now. If this is an indication of what happens when society ages and declines then it doesn't look to bright.
If they wanted to, they could fix the problem relatively easily. Japan has a high standard of living and I am sure would have no problem attracting immigrants to fill in the demographic losses. There next door neighbor has over a billion people that would probably move to Japan in the blink of an eye if they weren't so strict about immigration.
I'm going to say it'll lead to great prosperity. More housing and land available, etc. Especially with all the infrastructure in place. Seems ideal to me. Less cars, etc.
Japan has been contaminated by nuclear accident.
Drinking water bottles are bought.
It takes a lot of money.
Has been contaminated soil.
A large number of cesium in the seabed is sinking.
(30-year half-life of cesium)
Japan's population is shrinking because of a number of factors, so says my Japanese wife.
Firstly, it is because life is EXPENSIVE. Wages have been stagnant for the past ten years, and lifetime employment isn't guaranteed anymore. "Furitasu" aka Freiters (a combination of frei from German meaning "free" or "liberated" and "ters" which is English suffix meaning "people who do something" like "skaters" and other "ers") are the new norm.
I know a few Japanese women via my wife, and only one of them has had a baby, and they're all between 27 and 32.
This ties into the human development index. Since Japan has a very advanced infrastructure, which needs constant maintenance, expansion, and reinvestment, combined with a mature industrial base where competition isn't as fierce, the need for young blood isn't as high anymore.
Secondly, it's societal. Many women are waking up to the fact that most men are "normal" or "nerdy." To be fair, the male counterparts haven't been very flexible in allowing their wives freedom in exploring their potential and stick to traditional family structures (aka wife stays home and raises kids and takes care of the house while the man works). Women are allowed to work in all the positions men do, but as soon as the woman has a kid ... BANG! Their career is dead. I've heard it again and again. The woman has a kid, and she's dead in the water when returning.
What's a woman to do? She either chooses a career without a child, or getting married, having kids, and then stopping working or if she does work, she's actively discriminated against.
My wife worked for a Japanese company's branch in the US, with a Japanese boss, and spoke Japanese at work, so it was like being back home for her. When she announced she would be quitting, her boss gave her a gift. Want to guess what it was?
An apron.
Look no further to how Japanese men are literally ruining their chances of having kids than this.
It is not great, there are less and less young workers. There have been talks about making VISAs easier to get for uneducated immigrants to work in the factories.
Also, Japan will actually pay you money to have 3 + kids. Schools are constantly closing down.
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