HA NOI : With birth rates falling across Asia, Vietnam plans to offer financial support to women who have two children before turning 35, hoping to stem the decline.
According to state-run newspaper Viet Nam News, the new policy will start in January 2027. The government will pay a minimum of about 75 dollars per person.
The support also covers women from very small ethnic minority communities and those living in areas where the fertility rate has fallen below replacement level.
The measure includes maternity benefits, childbirth support and prenatal and newborn screening for some congenital diseases.
Last year, Vietnam scrapped its long-standing two-child policy, which was aimed at keeping population growth in check.
The population is still rising, but birth rates are dropping in Ho Chi Minh City and other urban areas.
Experts say the working population will peak in the late 2030s. Policymakers warn that an aging society will put future economic growth at risk.
