Korea and Japan are pouring astronomical budgets into stopping population decline, but an analysis found that young people are facing an existential crisis in which they are giving up on "relationships with others" themselves. The French daily Le Monde recently said in an analysis article that "the population crises in Korea and Japan go beyond a simple economic issue and are rooted in the deep-seated pain of psychological distancing between men and women and the unraveling of social bonds."
Le Monde assessed that "Japan has seen its population decline since 2009 and Korea since 2020, and there is little sign the trend will reverse." By total fertility rate for 2025, Korea at 0.8 and Japan at 1.38 showed faint signs of a rebound, but it is an illusion and far from enough to bend the long-term downward curve.
◇ Korea's "N-po" and Japan's "satori"… "Even love is a hassle"
Le Monde noted that young people in both countries see marriage as an "unscalable wall." The compulsion that "to have a child you must be married, and to marry you need a stable job and your own home" is overwhelming them. In particular, with the cost of raising one child reaching about 309 million won in Korea and about 22.5 million yen (about 200 million won) in Japan, starting a family no longer appears to be a rational choice for young people experiencing inflation and flat real wages.
But the more fundamental change is the "unraveling of relationships." Le Monde pointed out a clear trend among young people in both countries to avoid relationships that come with responsibility. In Japan, new terms such as "grass-eating men," who avoid dating, and "dried-fish women," who stay at home, have emerged, and the socially withdrawn hikikomori and "parasite singles," who rely on their parents, are also read as part of the same current.
The situation is no different in Korea. Under the self-mocking label "Hell Joseon," young people have become the "three giving-up generation," who forgo dating, marriage, and childbirth, and further, the "N-po generation," who set aside many elements of life. Analysts say expectations for the future have diminished in a social structure where the ladder of class mobility has weakened.
In particular, the deepening conflict between men and women is cited as a key variable. Some men express antipathy toward women, citing disadvantages from mandatory military service, while women, pushing back against a discriminatory social structure and sexual crimes, tend to avoid relationships. Some women join the "4B (no marriage, no dating, no sex, no childbirth)" movement and reject relationships with men altogether. The shift is visible in the numbers. In the World Economic Forum's 2025 gender equality index, Korea ranked 101st and Japan 118th out of 146 countries, in the lower tier.
The two governments are pouring massive finances into addressing low birthrates. Through multiple low-birthrate packages, Korea has spent more than 100 trillion won, and Japan is also pushing a "Children's Future Strategy" worth tens of trillions of won annually. But Le Monde questioned the effectiveness of such cash-splash measures. Although a range of policies have been rolled out, including expanded parental leave, housing support, and infertility treatment support, they have not led to a rebound in the birthrate.
Experts find the essence of the population crisis in the "collapse of social relationships." As the trend of shunning lives that form relationships with others and take responsibility spreads, marriage and childbirth are being pushed out of the set of options. Ultimately, analysts say the population decline in Korea and Japan is not just an economic problem but a structural crisis in which the very "way of living together" is shaking.