- Thursday, 26 February 2026
Japan’s births drop to new low for 10th straight year
By prefecture, only Tokyo and Ishikawa recorded increases in births compared with the previous year. | Getty Images
OKYO, Feb 26, 2026 (AFP): Japan's number of births came to 705,809 in 2025, hitting a new record low for the tenth consecutive year, preliminary figures by the health ministry showed Thursday.
The number of marriages rose for the second straight year to 505,656, but still marked the third lowest level in the postwar period.
The number of births declined by 15,179 from the previous year’s preliminary figure. While the rate of decrease had remained in the 5% range between 2022 and 2024, this year’s decline slowed to 2.1%. By prefecture, only Tokyo and Ishikawa recorded increases compared with the previous year.
Although the government has been implementing measures to address the declining birthrate totaling ¥3.6 trillion annually, the pace of decline is more than 15 years ahead of projections by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research. A ministry official commented that “the declining birthrate has yet to be halted, and we take the situation very seriously.”
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