BackStories » Saigon » Saigon Couples Encouraged to Make More Babies

Saigon Couples Encouraged to Make More Babies

Even though Vietnam’s population has been steadily growing the last few decades, a declining birth rate has prompted HCMC officials to encourage couples to have more than one child.

Vietnam ranks 13th in the world with 90 million inhabitants and sports a national birth rate of 2.06 children per couple. However, over the last 10 years, the birth rate in Saigon has been quickly dropping - according to Thanh Nien, the city had the lowest national birth at 1.45 children per couple in 2009 and 1.33 in 2012.

To address this problem, Duong Quoc Trong, director of the Population – Family Planning Department under the Heath Ministry, told reporters at a press conference on Wednesday, “I officially recommend that each Ho Chi Minh City couple have two children.” Trong said that couples with more than one child are uncommon in Saigon as most only have one.

This is the first time that officials have promoted having more children as previous birth-related edicts focused on keeping the national birth rate in check. From 1960 – 1964, Vietnam’s fertility rate was 6.36.

As in many other countries, education plays a significant role in these statistics. For rural women with low levels of education, the birth rate is 2.14 – 3.

It’s unclear if the government will provide any financial incentives to couples who have more than one child.

[Thanh Nien]

Related Articles

in Saigon

$100,000 Diamond Allegedly Vanishes From Woman’s Finger In HCMC Hotel

A Hanoi woman claims that she was drugged at a HCMC hotel last weekend and awoke to find that a $100,000 diamond had been pried from her ring.

in Saigon

100-Year-Old Trees In Front Of Opera House Cut Down To Make Way For Metro

Flower Street and the statues in front of Bến Thành Market aren’t the only sacrifices being made to accommodate the construction of Saigon’s first metro line.

in Saigon

122-Year-Old Saigon Woman Confirmed As World’s Oldest

The World Records Association (WRA) has completed the verification process and officially confirmed Saigon’s 122-year-old Nguyen Thi Tru, as the world’s oldest woman.

in Saigon

160 Wood Benches Being Added To Nguyen Hue Street

The trees that were cut down last July during construction of the metro station in front of the Saigon Opera House are making a comeback in the form of benches.

in Saigon

18,600 Trees to Be Cut for Tourist Road Through Can Gio

Saigon authorities have given the go-ahead for a US$8.7 million road through the UNESCO recognized Can Gio biosphere reserve that will necessitate the felling of 18,600 trees.

in Saigon

2 Foreigners Arrested for iPhone Snatching

In a reminder that crime transcends race, 2 foreigners were arrested last Friday for stealing an iPhone from a local woman in District 1. The 2 thieves were identified as Sean Douglas, 17, an Austral...

Partner Content