When China loosened it’s one-child policy the Chinese National Health and Family Planning Commission expected 2 million additional births a year. So far, only 700,000 couples have applied to have a second child. There is speculation that economic concerns may have led couples not to apply for a second baby.
Critics of China’s family planning policies say the country’s low birth rate “will cause the country to age quickly and hurt its economic viability.” A Chinese official, Zhao Yanpei, says it’s too early to tell: “It would be at least until the second year or the third year before we can tell if the overall birthing level would see any major change.”
