Arab News Japan

TOKYO: Japan’s estimated population of children under 15 years old was 13.66 million as of April 1, reflecting a decrease of 350,000 compared to the previous year, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

This data was unveiled to align with May 5; a day celebrated as Children’s Day—a time for families to honor the healthy growth and happiness of children. Although Children’s Day became a national holiday in 1948, its roots run deep in Japan’s ancient traditions, highlighting the enduring value of nurturing the next generation.

The figure has been decreasing for 44 consecutive years and has now dropped below 14 million for the first time, setting a record low since reliable data became available in 1950.

The percentage of children in the total population, which stands at 123.4 million, decreased by 0.2 percentage points from the previous year, reaching a record low of 11.1 percent. This marks the 51st consecutive year of decline in this demographic. The child population dropped below 16 million in 2015 and is projected to fall below 15 million by 2021, continuing to decline at a rapid pace.

According to the data, there were 6.99 million boys and 6.66 million girls. When examining age groups, the lowest population was among those aged 0-2, with 2.22 million. This was followed by 2.5 million in the 3-5 age group, 2.78 million in the 6-8 age group, 3.02 million in the 9-11 age group, and 3.14 million in the 12-14 age group. The number of individuals decreased with each successive age group.

Tokyo recorded the highest number of children among the prefectures, totaling 1,494,000, followed by Kanagawa with 1,008,000. These two prefectures were the only ones surpassing the 1 million mark. In contrast, Tottori had the lowest count, with only 63,000 children. Notably, all 47 prefectures experienced a decline in their numbers.

The highest percentage of children in the population by prefecture was in Okinawa at 15.8%, followed by Shiga and Saga at 12.7%. The lowest percentages were in Akita at 8.8% and Aomori at 9.8%.

In examining the percentage of children within the total population of 37 countries that have populations of 40 million or more, Japan’s figure of 11.1 percent ranks as the second lowest, following South Korea’s 10.6 percent. In comparison to other major countries, such as the United States at 17.3 percent and the United Kingdom at 17.2 percent, Japan is experiencing a significant decline in its birth rate.