The largest decrease in Japanese marriage in 70 years due to Corona… I even pulled out’AI matching’

The Sankei Shimbun reported on the 18th that the number of marriages in Japan is expected to decline the most in 70 years since 1950 due to the influence of the novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19). Since the decrease in marriage will lead to a low birth rate problem in the future, voices are rising in Japan that the government should come up with effective “marriage measures”.

On the 8th of last month, a couple about to get married in Tokyo, Japan, are taking wedding pictures. [EPA=연합뉴스]

According to estimates from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare of Japan, the number of marriages in Japan from January to October last year was 42,4343, a sharp decline of 13.3% from 490,301 in the same period last year. If similar figures come out in November-December, it is estimated that the second-largest decline will be recorded following 1950 (15%), which showed the largest decline since statistics were prepared.

The number of marriages in Japan has continued to decline since the 2000s, but in 2019, when the new name was changed to “Reiwa,” the “marriage boom” temporarily increased by 3.3%. That was a sharp decline in one year due to the direct attack of Corona 19. The government’s’small childization’ (low birth rate) policy manager analyzed, “The number of meetings that lead to marriage due to Corona 19 has decreased, and the result seems to have come out as it is difficult to hold a wedding ceremony.”

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s Special Committee for Countermeasures against Low Fertility pointed out that it is a “crisis situation in which the fertility rate and the number of births can significantly decrease in the medium term” in connection with the decrease in the number of marriages at the end of last year. Accordingly, the Japanese government has decided to significantly increase the items related to’marriage measures’ in the 2021 budget.

According to the Tokyo newspaper on the 18th, the Japanese government is actively promoting as a countermeasure for marriage is a’matching system’ that utilizes AI (artificial intelligence) and big data. When a person who wants to meet registers as a member at the local government’s marriage support center, AI finds and recommends a’good match’ among the members.

According to a summary of the Japanese Cabinet Office, 19 prefectures are currently using this system among Japanese local governments. In the case of Ehime Prefecture, which has been operating a marriage support center since 2015, it is reported that the probability of meeting with a recommended partner has increased from 13% to 29% while utilizing big data.

The Japanese government decided to provide subsidies to local governments that use this system from this year and secured 2 billion yen (about 21.2 billion won) as a related budget. Government subsidies for rent and moving expenses for newlyweds are also increasing for newlyweds who are struggling financially due to Corona 19.

However, some point out that more fundamental measures are needed. Professor Masahiro Yamada of Chuo University in Japan told the Sankei Shimbun, “If Corona 19 is corrected, the marriage rate will recover to some extent, but economic unrest will not disappear.” said.

Tokyo = Correspondent Lee Young-hee [email protected]