This Chinese county to give cash handouts to couples to have babies

According to a WeChat post from the local administration this week, families with three children in Linze county of China's Gansu province, will be eligible for a lump sum payment of 5,000 yuan ($777) when the third child is born, as well as 10,000 yuan per year until the child reaches the age of three.

For families with one or two children, smaller subsidies are available, and the local government has offered subsidies for schools and property purchases. 

In July, Panzhihua, in Sichuan's southwestern province, became the country's first city to offer cash subsidies to encourage childbearing.

Authorities are taking more proactive measures to stem the decline in birth rates, including a surprising move in May to enable all couples to have a third child and pledging supportive measures to assist parents in raising children. 

Linze's policy was implemented in response to a major decrease in the number of permanent residents in the area, which fell by 22,000 in the most recent census from the previous one ten years prior.

From 2020 to 2030, the county administration wants to expand the local population by 9%. 

China's population increased at its slowest rate since the 1950s in the decade leading up to 2020, echoing patterns in neighbouring South Korea and Japan, according to official census figures.

It now has a population of 1.42 billion people, with growth slowing for the fourth year in a row.

According to census data issued by China's National Bureau of Statistics, 1.2 crore babies were born last year, down from 1.465 crore in 2019 - a drop of 18% in a year.

The country's fertility rate has decreased to 1.3, well below the replacement level of 2.1 needed to replace a generation. 

(With inputs from agencies)