The Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Health Promotion Administration has announced a new plan designed to encourage a higher birthrate. The plan aims to counterbalance Taiwan’s rapidly growing population of elderly people by helping to subsidize artificial reproduction.
The administration’s Director General Chiou Shu-Ti announced details of the plan on Wednesday. She said that the plan will be divided into three stages, to be rolled out over the course of three years.
"The plan will be divided into three stages. During the first stage, we will be taking baby steps, giving assistance to low and lower-middle income households," said Chiou. "Each household will be eligible for a maximum of NT$100,000 [US$3,345] each year. After the second year, we will gradually expand to households with an income 70% or more below average, and households with an income 130% or more below average in the third year. They will be eligible for a maximum of NT$38,000 [US$1,279] per year."
A United Nations reports showed that Taiwan has the world’s lowest birthrate. The Ministry of Health and Welfare believes that late marriages and the late age at which women have children are two important factors behind the low birthrate.
The Health Promotion Administration estimates that the plan will require NT$1 billion (roughly US$33 million) in funding. The funding is expected to come from a surcharge levied on tobacco products. The administration hopes that the plan will raise Taiwan’s birthrate from 1.055 to 1.1, adding 4,000 infants to Taiwan’s population.