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Fertility Policy Population Goal

Lower

Maintain

No policy

Raise (Pronatalist)

Click on a country for details.

Pro-Natalist Countries / Countries with Low Birth Rates 2024

Pro-natalist countries are countries with low birth rates and policies that they implement as a means of increasing the birth rates. When a country has a very slow rate of births and a fast rate of aging, it may become a pro-natalist country in order to keep the population growth steady. This is for a variety of reasons; to increase tax revenue, improve the economy, and to keep families stable overall.

The United Nations indicates that many countries are in this position right now, and the number of pro-natalist countries in the world is increasing annually. It is estimated that the number of countries that have adopted pro-natalist policies has risen from 10 to 15 percent between 2001 and 2015. Some countries that have these policies will provide extra income to families as support to larger families, and as an incentive to have more children.

Countries With Low Birth Rates

There is a long list of countries with low birth rates, and a long list of pro-natalist countries. The list of countries with pro-natalist policies is always changing, and some governments adopt moderate pro-natalist policies to meet the best of both worlds. Many governments have party factions that do not want to give money to people with more children, and moderate pro-natalist policy is typically the answer.

The most well-known pro-natalist countries include many countries in Europe, Japan, Canada, South Korea, Greece, Singapore, Spain, Italy, and many countries in Europe. France is a country with a low birth rate and so is Germany. However, Germany has hesitated to adopt the pro-natalist policy. Instead, Germany provides a generous two-parent family leave program when there is a new member of the family.

What are Pro Natalist Policies?

A pro-natalist policy is one that the government enacts in order to aid in the support of families, and also increase the fertility rates of a country. The aim is to ensure economic stability both in the short term and in the long term. The most common form of pro-natalist policy comes in the form of a child tax credit benefit, which is typically a payment made to qualifying families with children of eligible age. Other tax credits can be included in the policy of pro-natalist countries.

Another goal is to control population size, but also to ensure population growth. Europe is known for its pro-natalist policy with France, Iran, and Sweden all assisting families of children. When the country’s population rates are slowing, legislators in pro-natalist countries will work to implement policy to help the population now and ensure economic growth in the future.

  • As of 2019, more than 60% of governments globally had implemented policies designed to influence the current level of fertility. Another 19 governments were aiming to maintain their current fertility level, albeit with a growing number adopting pronatalist measures (55 countries or areas out of 143 countries or areas with such policies). Many governments have adopted implicit or explicit pronatalist family policies, such as offering baby bonuses and parental leave and/or tax incentives as well as housing and income allowances related to the birth of a child. Subsidized fertility treatment, long-term job guarantees for new mothers/parents, and affordable childcare and after-school care are some of the additional incentives adopted to raise fertility.

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Country
Fertility Policy Population Goal
AfghanistanLower
AlbaniaRaise (Pronatalist)
AlgeriaLower
AndorraMaintain
AngolaLower
Antigua and BarbudaNo policy
ArgentinaMaintain
ArmeniaRaise (Pronatalist)
AustraliaNo policy
AustriaRaise (Pronatalist)
AzerbaijanMaintain
BahamasNo policy
BahrainLower
BangladeshLower
BarbadosNo policy
BelarusRaise (Pronatalist)
BelgiumMaintain
BelizeNo policy
BeninNo policy
BhutanLower
BoliviaMaintain
Bosnia and HerzegovinaNo policy
BotswanaMaintain
BrazilNo policy
BruneiNo policy
BulgariaRaise (Pronatalist)
Burkina FasoLower
BurundiLower
CambodiaNo policy
CameroonLower
CanadaNo policy
Cape VerdeLower
Central African RepublicNo policy
ChadLower
ChileRaise (Pronatalist)
ChinaRaise (Pronatalist)
ColombiaMaintain
ComorosLower
Cook IslandsRaise (Pronatalist)
Costa RicaNo policy
CroatiaRaise (Pronatalist)
CubaRaise (Pronatalist)
CyprusRaise (Pronatalist)
Czech RepublicNo policy
DenmarkNo policy
DjiboutiLower
DominicaNo policy
Dominican RepublicLower
DR CongoLower
EcuadorLower
EgyptLower
El SalvadorLower
Equatorial GuineaLower
EritreaLower
EstoniaRaise (Pronatalist)
EswatiniLower
EthiopiaLower
FijiLower
FinlandRaise (Pronatalist)
FranceRaise (Pronatalist)
GabonRaise (Pronatalist)
GambiaLower
GeorgiaRaise (Pronatalist)
GermanyNo policy
GhanaLower
GreeceRaise (Pronatalist)
GrenadaMaintain
GuatemalaNo policy
GuineaLower
Guinea BissauLower
GuyanaRaise (Pronatalist)
HaitiLower
HondurasNo policy
HungaryRaise (Pronatalist)
IcelandMaintain
IndiaLower
IndonesiaLower
IranRaise (Pronatalist)
IraqNo policy
IrelandNo policy
IsraelRaise (Pronatalist)
ItalyRaise (Pronatalist)
JamaicaLower
JapanRaise (Pronatalist)
JordanLower
KazakhstanRaise (Pronatalist)
KenyaLower
KiribatiLower
KuwaitRaise (Pronatalist)
KyrgyzstanRaise (Pronatalist)
LaosNo policy
LatviaRaise (Pronatalist)
LebanonNo policy
LesothoLower
LiberiaNo policy
LibyaNo policy
LiechtensteinRaise (Pronatalist)
LithuaniaRaise (Pronatalist)
LuxembourgRaise (Pronatalist)
MadagascarLower
MalawiLower
MalaysiaNo policy
MaldivesNo policy
MaliLower
MaltaRaise (Pronatalist)
Marshall IslandsLower
MauritaniaLower
MauritiusRaise (Pronatalist)
MexicoLower
MicronesiaLower
MoldovaRaise (Pronatalist)
MonacoMaintain
MongoliaRaise (Pronatalist)
MontenegroLower
MoroccoMaintain
MozambiqueLower
MyanmarNo policy
NauruMaintain
NepalLower
NetherlandsNo policy
New ZealandNo policy
NicaraguaLower
NigerLower
NigeriaLower
NiueRaise (Pronatalist)
North KoreaRaise (Pronatalist)
North MacedoniaRaise (Pronatalist)
NorwayNo policy
OmanMaintain
PakistanLower
PalauNo policy
PalestineNo policy
PanamaNo policy
Papua New GuineaLower
ParaguayMaintain
PeruLower
PhilippinesLower
PolandRaise (Pronatalist)
PortugalRaise (Pronatalist)
QatarRaise (Pronatalist)
Republic of the CongoNo policy
RomaniaRaise (Pronatalist)
RussiaRaise (Pronatalist)
RwandaLower
Saint Kitts and NevisNo policy
Saint LuciaNo policy
Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesNo policy
SamoaLower
San MarinoNo policy
Sao Tome and PrincipeNo policy
Saudi ArabiaRaise (Pronatalist)
SenegalLower
SerbiaRaise (Pronatalist)
SeychellesNo policy
Sierra LeoneLower
SingaporeRaise (Pronatalist)
SlovakiaRaise (Pronatalist)
SloveniaNo policy
Solomon IslandsLower
SomaliaNo policy
South AfricaNo policy
South KoreaRaise (Pronatalist)
South SudanRaise (Pronatalist)
SpainRaise (Pronatalist)
Sri LankaNo policy
SudanNo policy
SurinameNo policy
SwedenNo policy
SwitzerlandNo policy
SyriaLower
TajikistanLower
TanzaniaMaintain
ThailandRaise (Pronatalist)
Timor LesteLower
TogoLower
TongaMaintain
Trinidad and TobagoMaintain
TunisiaMaintain
TurkeyRaise (Pronatalist)
TurkmenistanRaise (Pronatalist)
TuvaluLower
UgandaLower
UkraineRaise (Pronatalist)
United Arab EmiratesRaise (Pronatalist)
United KingdomNo policy
United StatesNo policy
UruguayNo policy
UzbekistanNo policy
VanuatuLower
Vatican CityRaise (Pronatalist)
VenezuelaNo policy
VietnamMaintain
YemenLower
ZambiaLower
ZimbabweLower
showing: 195 rows

How many countries have pro-natalist policies?

Although the list is constantly changing, there are currently 32 countries that have pro-natalist policies in place and that are attempting to increase their fertility rates. China, Russia, Japan, Iran, and Turkey are all examples of these countries.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources