"Visiting with Kids? No Need to Queue"… Japan Unveils Bold Measures Against Low Birthrate

Japanese Government Pushes to Introduce 'Children Fast-Track System'
Priority Access to Service Counters and Museums When Accompanied by Children

Japan, which has been facing the low birthrate issue earlier than Korea, is drawing attention by introducing the 'Children Fast Track System.'

According to Asahi Shimbun, NHK, and others on the 20th, the Japanese government held an inter-ministerial meeting to discuss the introduction of the 'Children Fast Track System,' which allows families with children to enter government-operated facilities without waiting in line.

[Image source=Pixabay]

This system is part of measures to address the low birthrate, aiming to prioritize families with children and pregnant women by allowing them to enter local government service counters, parks, museums, art galleries, and other national facilities without queuing.

The plan is to fully implement this nationwide starting this summer vacation and gradually expand its application from public to private facilities. The government is also considering applying it to sports event admissions in the future.

Earlier, the Japanese government announced a major policy called 'a different dimension of low birthrate measures' for this year. As part of this, they launched the 'Children and Families Agency,' directly under the Prime Minister, aiming to create a child-rearing friendly environment and increase the birthrate.

Masanobu Ogura, Minister in charge of Children’s Policy, said on the day, “I hope this will be introduced focusing not on places convenient for administration but on places where children and families really want to go.”

Previously, the Japanese government revealed basic low birthrate countermeasures including ▲ extending child allowances to high school students, ▲ applying medical insurance to childbirth costs, and ▲ establishing a deferred tuition payment system.

Currently, Japan provides a monthly child allowance of 15,000 yen (about 150,000 won) to parents with children under 3 years old, and 10,000 yen (about 100,000 won) monthly for children from age 3 to junior high school students.

Going forward, the government plans to raise the child allowance payment age to high school students and provide child allowances to parents regardless of income. Additionally, families with two or more children will receive higher child allowances, and a lump sum of 500,000 yen (about 4.94 million won) will be paid upon childbirth.

The government aims to increase the income of young people who avoid marriage and shift the social framework so that the entire community supports child-rearing. Regarding this, Prime Minister Kishida emphasized, “We will realize a ‘child-centered society’ that prioritizes the interests of children and young people.”

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