 |
 |
Italy: A land of low Birth Rate
by Desri Dillinaco
http://www.fgritaly.com
Italy, as we all know, is the world center of the
Catholic Church. Strangely, in spite of its deep-rooted
Catholic culture and tradition, it has today changed into
a nation having the second lowest birth rates in Europe,
next only to Spain. At 1.2 per woman that means one
child per woman, according to Global Agenda Magazine.
Italy was officially a Catholic country until 1985, when
its status as a Roman Catholic state was discontinued.
For a nation where the family unit has been of paramount
importance, this trend seems unusual.
Culturally this trend may appear strange in a previously
Catholic country (its official status as a Roman Catholic
state was removed in 1985) where family has been a central
unit in society and Catholic culture.
In contrast to the situation in Italy, some other
catholic countries in Europe such as France and Ireland
have a high rate of child birth. The reason for this may
be attributed to the fact that the government is more
lavish in funding health and child care. They are also
offering better incentives to families with more than one
child.
In countries where the birth rate is low and declining,
such as Italy, Russia, and Japan, there is concern that the
current pension systems will not continue to sustain an
aging population with fewer people to pay into it.
Countries in Eastern Europe also witness a similar trend.
Those who study social and public policy in Europe have
been evaluating possible reasons for this decline in birth
rates.
Some believe these pay-as-you-go pension systems actually
have a direct impact on birth rates, making the older
population less dependent on their children for day to day
needs. In other words, children in the past were a kind of
investment in one~s future security. The more children one
had, the greater chance of being cared for in old age and
the more hands to help on the farm or with the family
business.
They also feel that since people have to pay higher taxes
to support these kinds of social programmes, they have
lower disposable incomes and less money to meet the
expenses of bringing up more children.
Another explanation for falling birth rates is the
increased number of women in child-bearing years that work
full-time. Depending on country of residence, child care
programs vary. Countries like Norway are more generous than
Italy with government-funded day care and flexibility to
work part-time and keep one~s position open during a year
of maternity/paternity leave.
Thus, Italy's declining birth rate is definitely a
problem that needs to be looked into, keeping in mind the
fact that today's youth will need to be supported in
their old age. However, there is no denying that this
issue is far less serious than the opposite scenario of
galloping population growth in developing countries.
Submit An Article
|
|
