In a bold new effort to reverse its population decline, China announced it will eliminate tuition fees for public kindergartens starting autumn 2025. The move marks a significant expansion of social welfare in a nation grappling with the long-term consequences of its previous one-child policy.
Effective next year, parents will no longer pay for the final year of pre-primary education in public institutions. The measure is part of a broader initiative aimed at reducing the financial burden of raising children—a key deterrent for many young Chinese couples amid rising living costs and stagnant wages.
This announcement follows closely behind a newly introduced annual stipend for families with children under the age of three, signaling a clear shift in government priorities as demographic alarms ring louder.
China’s birth rate has dropped sharply in recent years. In 2023, the country recorded fewer than 10 million births—a 50% decrease from 2016, the year the state scrapped its restrictive one-child policy. With deaths now outpacing births and projections suggesting the population could shrink to 800 million by the end of the century, the demographic decline poses a direct threat to long-term economic stability.
After losing its status as the most populous nation to India in 2023, Beijing is under pressure to adapt quickly. These latest reforms suggest the Chinese leadership is prepared to experiment with more family-friendly policies, recognizing that economic growth and geopolitical influence rest heavily on a stable, growing population.
