When western adults think of pivotal Chinese policies, they typically think of the one child policy enforced from 1980 to 2015. This 35-year stint was an attempt to stop population growth in China, and resulted in a reduction of fertility rates, a smaller population of women and undocumented children. In 2016, China changed the policy to allow for two children, and in 2021, the policy was updated to three. Now, China is actively attempting to start a baby boom.
The motivation behind the push for procreation lies in several economic factors, including a workforce on the brink of extinction and the rising cost to raise a child. Most young adults simply cannot afford to raise a child in China.
In Sichuan, a Chinese province boasting a population of 84 million, the current three-child policy has been all but discarded. All limits on children have been lifted, including children born to unmarried adults. Before the announcement, only married couples could register children.
Although the Sichuan policy was hailed as a step in the right direction, the incentive still may not be enough. Last year, 20,000 Chinese 18-to-25-year olds were asked to take a survey. More than half did not want to have children. While lifting all limits is seen as positive, it may not be enough relief to persuade young adults to have children at all.
China’s tech sector has been booming lately, led by Bao Fan. Bao runs the investment bank China Renaissance Holdings, which both advises and invests in tech companies—nearly all successful.
Last month, he vanished.
Now, China Renaissance Holdings says Bao is simply cooperating with an investigation by the People’s Republic of China. The disappearance caused major concerns about the Chinese government and their tight grip on the Chinese Economy. Bao’s disappearance is one of a string that have occurred since 2015.
China’s economy is also struggling because of its strict COVID-19 policies, but questions about the origins of the pandemic are now plaguing the nation.
According to a report by the U.S. Energy Department, the coronavirus pandemic may have originated through an accidental laboratory leak in China.
Officials briefed on the report say that the conclusion was made with “low confidence,” however the intelligence community is still divided on what that means.
In October of 2021, the National Intelligence Council concluded, with low confidence, that the pandemic happened as a result of natural variation.
The Energy Department’s report is part of a series of attempts by the United States and other countries to find how the pandemic started. The origins could be key to stopping another global health crisis.
The United States isn’t only investigating China for past events—the war in Ukraine, which passed its one-year anniversary last month, may provide a key opportunity for China to tighten its ties with Russia.
Although the country is theoretically neutral, it refuses to call the conflict an invasion, and still has diplomatic and economic ties with Russia.
Now, the U.S. national security advisor said that China would face “real costs” if it starts providing aid in the form of weapons to Russia.
While ties between the United States and China are tense, it’s important to remember that China owns more than $1 trillion of the United State’s debt, a source of contention in the American government.
