Why Are Private Kindergartens Closing in China?..."Lowest Birth Rate Since the Founding"

Lowest Birthrate Since 1949 Causes Sharp Decline in Kindergarten Enrollment
30-50% of Kindergartens Expected to Close in 2023

Private kindergartens in China are reportedly facing financial difficulties due to the birth rate dropping to its lowest level since the founding of the country.

On the 11th (local time), Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported on a kindergarten in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China.

This kindergarten, located in the Longxian area with a population of 650,000, had 140 students when it opened five years ago, but the number dropped to about 30 by 2020, putting it at risk of financial collapse.

The principal, Mr. Liu Dewei, said, "At first, I thought it was because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But even after the easing of quarantine policies at the end of last year, nothing changed. There simply are no children." He invested millions of yuan to open the kindergarten but is now considering closing it down.

According to data from the Chinese Ministry of Education, the number of students in private kindergartens decreased for two consecutive years in 2020 and 2021. The situation is similar in large cities with high populations like Shanghai. Shanghai resident Lucy Wang said, "There were seven classes when my first child attended kindergarten in 2018. But when my second child went in 2021, only four classes remained. The number of students also decreased."

This phenomenon is caused by the younger generation's mindset that does not consider marriage essential and the declining birth rate. In 2021, the number of first-time marriages in China was 11.578 million, marking the first time in 36 years since 1985 that the number fell below 12 million.

[Image source=Pixabay]

Accordingly, the birth rate also plummeted, dropping from 18.8 million in 2016 to 9.5 million last year, about half the previous figure. This is the lowest record since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949.

China implemented the one-child policy from the 1980s, then fully allowed the two-child policy in 2016, and introduced a three-child policy per family in May 2021. However, as living and education costs rose, the avoidance of marriage and childbirth intensified, and despite various incentives, the declining birth rate trend could not be reversed.

Experts point out, "The causes of low birth rates include rising child-rearing and housing costs, improved education levels of women, and changes in self-awareness where marriage and childbirth are no longer seen as obligations."

As a result, private kindergartens, which account for more than half of the preschool market in China, are likely to continue facing a direct hit. Beijing-based education service company Sunglory Education Research Institute predicted last year that "by 2030, 30 to 50% of kindergartens operating in early 2020 will close." Similarly, primary, secondary schools, and universities are also expected to be affected.

Director Xiong Bingqi of the 21st Century Education Research Institute argued, "The Chinese government must increase financial support for all kindergartens to improve this situation." He added, "Currently, the student-to-teacher ratio in China is higher than in developed countries, causing issues with low-quality education. If this opportunity is used to reduce the number of students per teacher, the quality of education can improve, and teachers will not lose their jobs."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.