South Korea is considering a proposal to pay new parents 100 million won, or about $73,000, in an effort to boost the country’s falling birth rate.South Korea’s Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission is holding a public survey period to gauge the people’s interest in and opinions about the new proposal.The country is asking survey takers questions about whether they think the expenditure is appropriate and whether or not a financial incentive would motivate couples to have kids.The new measure’s price tag is estimated at about $16 billion annually, about half of the budget that the country currently allocates to addressing low birth rates.“Through this survey, we plan to re-evaluate the country’s birth promotion policies to determine whether direct financial subsidies could be an effective solution,” the commission said in a statement.In 2023 the country’s birth rate declined to 0.72 children per woman, the lowest national birth rate of any country in the world. While myriad factors influence the birth rate, the cost of living crisis in South Korea is widely cited as a major reason for the recent decline.
