{"id":2200397,"date":"2023-03-14T20:56:48","date_gmt":"2023-03-14T11:56:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?p=2200397"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:07:57","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:07:57","slug":"why-more-and-more-south-koreans-are-choosing-not-to-have-children","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/03\/why-more-and-more-south-koreans-are-choosing-not-to-have-children\/","title":{"rendered":"Why more and more South Koreans are choosing not to have children"},"content":{"rendered":"
Kim Bo-mi is 34 and single. She works at a public relations company in Seoul and enjoys vacationing overseas and learning painting, ceramics and tennis. She is satisfied with her lifestyle and doesn\u2019t want to have children.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt takes more than we can afford to provide a better life for our children\u2019s generation,\u201d Kim said. \u201cI don\u2019t see why I should give up the life I enjoy now by burdening myself with such high costs.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Korea\u2019s total fertility rate has plummeted to an all-time low, renewing concerns about the economic strain of population decline. The birth rate sank to 0.78, breaking its all-time low of 0.81 last year according to an <\/span>annual government report<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Kim and others say the economic burden of child care, workplace conditions and changing family values are all significant factors in the sharp birthrate decline. Expensive housing, the growing population density in Seoul and its surrounding cities, a grim job market and persistent gender inequalities around housework and child care aggravate the situation.<\/span><\/p>\n Among developed countries, Korea is the only one with a fertility rate below 1. The OECD average fertility rate was 1.59\u00a0 in 2020, twice as high as the Korean figure of 0.84. The second lowest, Italy, was notably higher, at <\/span>1.2<\/span><\/a> that same year.<\/span><\/p>\n Experts told <\/span>Korea Pro<\/span><\/i> that young people are making a \u201crational choice\u201d not to have children.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cResources are limited now that the country has entered a long-term low-growth era,\u201d said Jeon Young-soo, a demographic expert at Hanyang University. \u201cWhen they\u2019ve got nothing and no hopes of having more, starting a family to support is a risky bet.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Young South Koreans are increasingly shifting their focus to maximizing their own potential and opportunities, Jeon said. \u201cTheir circumstantial judgment are sharper. They don\u2019t bet on future uncertainty or seek interest through the family but rather maximize the benefit that they have now,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n UNBEARABLE COSTS\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n Like Kim, Park Min-cheol, a 42-year-old factory worker in Gyeonggi Province, does not want to give up what he now has for an extra family member. He and his wife decided not to have kids because of concerns about maintaining financial stability.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAs a double-income household, we are doing all right now, but with a kid, I know for a fact that it will get extremely tight,\u201d he said. \u201cI also don\u2019t think my kid\u2019s life will be any better than mine under such circumstances. So why bother having one?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Many people see child care as a lifetime cost they may not be able to absorb. Part of this outlook is due to the Korean education system, which relies heavily on private cram schools in addition to the school curriculum.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Lee Eun-jin, a 41-year-old raising a seven-year-old boy, says she is overwhelmed by the cost of her child\u2019s private tutoring. She believes it is impossible to have a second child.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI sent my child to private academies for English, math, music and football, which cost roughly $1,200 a month,\u201d Lee said, adding these subject choices are common among her child\u2019s cohorts. \u201cThe cost doubles during school breaks as academies completely take up the role of the school.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Lee and her husband also spent tens of thousands of dollars to send her son to a private English-speaking academy before he started primary school, roughly equal to the average cost of university tuition fees.<\/span><\/p>\n Such academies are highly sought after in Seoul and around the country. The education ministry reported that the number of so-called English preschools nationwide <\/span>increased<\/span><\/a> from 474 to 811, a 70% increase from five years ago.<\/span><\/p>\n