Vietnam on Tuesday announced it has abolished its long-standing two-child policy to try and reverse declining birth rates and ease the pressures of an aging population.
The national birthrate of 1.91 children per woman recorded in 2024 was down from 2.11 children per woman in 2021, 2.01 in 2022 and 1.96 in 2023.
Vietnam introduced rules blocking families from having more than two children in 1988 to reduce pressure on limited resources after years of war.
Vietnam National Assembly passed amendments scrapping rules that limit families to having one or two children, state media Vietnam News Agency reported Wednesday.
Dao Hong Lan, Vietnam’s health minister said the birth control policy was reversed to tackle the declining population, among other issues that threaten the country’s economic, social, and national security sustainability.
“This reform aims to tackle growing disparities in birth rates across regions and social groups and to prevent population decline below the replacement level, a trend that threatens Vietnam’s sustainable economic and social development, as well as its national security and defence in the long term” .
