Some villages in China are offering matchmakers cash rewards if they successfully find wives for men over 30.
Local governments in some rural areas of southern China's Guangdong province and northwestern Shaanxi province have announced incentives of 600-1,000 yuan (about $84-$140) for matchmakers.
The condition is that they introduce women to men over 30 years old in the village and the couples must get married.
Most marriage promotion programs start in January and February. The Xiangjiazhuang Village Council in Shaanxi Province has pledged to pay about $140 to successful matchmakers starting January 1. The village has about 270 households and more than 40 unmarried men between the ages of 25 and 40.
A newlywed couple poses for a photo after registering their marriage in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China in February 2023. Photo: China Daily
According to the 2020 census, China has about 722 million men and 690 million women. The severe gender imbalance in the population structure is partly due to the more than three decades of the one-child policy (1980-2015), when cultural traditions in China created pressure to have sons.
China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) recorded a gender imbalance in the rural population of 108 men for every 100 women in 2021. At this rate, Chinese officials estimate that about 30 million men nationwide are single, leading to concerns about the social and economic impact.
China's parliament and policy advisory bodies at all levels have proposed a number of measures to promote marriage in rural areas, including cash incentives. However, some experts say money is not the key solution to solving the "spinsterhood crisis" in the countryside.
"The unemployment rate among young people is leading to a low marriage rate. Young men who do not have enough income to support their families do not dare to think about marriage," said Di Phu Hien, an expert on Chinese demography working at the University of Wisconsin - Madison, USA.
He noted that cash incentives could also increase the budget burden due to public debt at the local government level. "Encouraging an increase in the birth rate is a difficult task for local officials, let alone encouraging marriage," Mr. Di commented.
China recorded its second consecutive year of population decline in more than 60 years. The NBS put China's population at 1.409 billion at the end of 2023, down about two million from 1.41175 billion at the end of 2022. China's birth rate also fell to a record low last year, at 6.39 children per 1,000 people, down from 6.77 in 2022.
Thanh Danh (According to Paper )
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