To address the low birthrate issue, Statistics Korea has released low birthrate statistics indicators that include three major areas and 61 indicators.
On the 24th, Statistics Korea held the 21st National Statistics Committee meeting and noted that it reviewed agenda items such as the establishment of low birthrate statistical indicators. The National Statistics Committee is a body that reviews and decides on matters related to the creation, distribution, and use of statistics according to the Statistics Act, with Choe Sang Mok, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, serving as the Chairperson.
During this meeting, a low birthrate statistical indicator proposal to support low birthrate policies was discussed. The low birthrate statistical indicators are composed of three main areas: ▲birth status ▲determinants ▲policy systems. Birth status includes 18 indicators related to fertility, marriage, and maternal and child health; determinants include 24 indicators related to values and conditions for family formation, as well as childcare. The policy systems area encompasses 19 indicators related to family formation and childcare-related policy systems.
Out of the 61 indicators, 53 utilized existing statistics, and eight are new statistics. The newly developed statistics will include "marital fertility rate," which can be used for research on out-of-wedlock births and singlehood. Monthly average childcare costs per child and income replacement rate during parental leave will also be developed through consultation with related ministries.
Five new statistics, including cohort fertility rate, cohort childlessness rate, youth income mobility, demand for low birthrate policy systems, and Neul Bom School utilization rate, have been finalized. The cohort fertility rate refers to the fertility rate of women aged 50 to 54 after their childbearing years have ended. A cohort refers to a population group that has experienced the same event at the same time.
For example, the fertility rate for 50-year-old women from 2010 to 2020 decreased from 1.96 children to 1.71 children. The cohort childlessness rate surged from 4.4% to 12.3% for 50-year-old women from 2010 to 2020.
Additionally, the meeting also brought up the reform of the national statistics management system to enable the use of big data and machine learning as experimental statistics. The plan for developing timely statistics in areas like population and safety for next year's national statistics development plan was also discussed. The basic plans for next year's population and housing census and the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries census were also reviewed.