A group of data released by the Ministry of Civil Affairs showed that the number of marriages in the first quarter of 2018 was 3 million 17 thousand pairs, down 5.7% from the same period, and the marriage rate of Shanghai, Zhejiang, Tianjin and other economically developed areas was generally low. If compared with the 4 million 282 thousand pairs of marriages in the same period 5 years ago, the first quarter of 2018 has dropped by 29.54%. According to expert analysis, the declining number of marriageable population, the delay in marriage age and the acceleration of urbanization are the reasons for the declining number of marriages.

The marriage rate is declining year by year

The knot, or not? According to statistics from the Ministry of civil affairs, this data has obvious differences in different regions.

The marriage rate in the economically developed areas such as North and Guangzhou is generally low. The 5 provinces and cities with the lowest marriage rate are Shanghai, Zhejiang, Tianjin, Jiangxi and Shandong, respectively. The marriage rate is 0.45%, 0.61%, 0.61%, 0.62% and 0.63% respectively. In contrast, the 5 provinces with the highest marriage rate are Guizhou, Anhui, Tibet, Qinghai and Henan, and the marriage rate is above 0.91%, and the per capita GDP in these areas is relatively low. The marriage rate has the opposite trend with the economic development level.

How do young people think about the low marriage rate?

In Beijing, the auditors are engaged in the audit. The city has a fast pace and fierce competition. It is normal for the audit industry to work overtime. There is no time to date, and there is no time to be relative. This reflects the dilemma faced by many young people in cities. Even young people with stable relationships, many of them do not dare to talk about marriage. Xu Shan, a white collar in Shanghai, said, the cost of living is rising, and it is bound to take into account the expenses of birth and childcare after marriage. It is not easy to change from individual to family.

The price of housing in economically developed areas is relatively high, to a certain extent, it also slows down the pace of young people entering marriage. Yu Xian frankly said: no house, mother-in-law is definitely not willing to live in shared housing there are many inconveniences. But high housing prices like Beijing are hard to afford before the age of 35.

In addition, many urban youths expressed their preference for marriage. Lu Zifu, who works in Nanjing, has a car with time, but he still says that marriage is a lifetime thing, or to find three views, people who can communicate deeply, age is not a decisive factor.

Lu Jiehua, Professor of sociology at Peking University, said that with the development of the economy and society, the concept of marriage and childbearing between generations has changed greatly. For many after 80 after 90, the phenomenon of late marriage and unmarried marriage is becoming more and more common, social inclusion is also increasing, marriage is no longer the only choice. Some analysts believe that in the next period of time, the rate of marriage will continue to decline as a result of changes in the number and structure of marriageable age population.

The process of urbanization is a push

Professor Zhai Zhenwu, Dean of the school of society and population of Renmin University of China, said that the decline in the number of married people, the delay in marriage age and the urbanization of high-speed development are the main reasons for the declining number of marriages in China since 2013.

The birth rate has dropped from 21.06 per 1000 in 1990 to 16.75 per 1000 in 1997. Zhai Zhenwu further explained: since 90s, the number of births has been declining, which is the main reason for the declining number of marriages nowadays. This change is not only expected, but also consistent with previous estimates.

Look at the age of marriage -- another important reason why marriage age has been postponed. Jiangsus big marriage data show that in the past 5 years, the average age of marriage in Jiangsu has increased by about 1 per year. According to Shanghais statistics, the average age of marriage for women in Shanghai was 26.51 in 2010, reaching 28.14 in 2014. In Wang Jies surprise, she said in Beijing, she said: all the students in the class were twenty seven and eighteen years old. All the students who returned to school after two jobs were not married before graduation.

Zhai Zhenwu analysis, now nearly half of the adult population in China will receive higher education, and the number of students entering the masters and doctoral stages is increasing year by year, and the corresponding young people are independent, work and family age will also be pushed back. In the early years, when the young people reached the age of 23 or 4, many of them got married. Now, with the popularization of higher education, the number of young people has been increased, and they may be 23 years old after graduation. The age of marriage will inevitably be pushed back. Quite a number of marriageable age people are not married, and also make the number of marriages low.

Analysts say that the progress of urbanization and the continuous development of economy have also affected the Marriage Choices of young people to a certain extent. The influx of large numbers of population into the cities has led to economic development, and has also pushed up the cost of living and intensified market competition. The level of economic development has improved and the marriage rate has gone down. This is a trend all over the world.

The encouragement of marriage and childbirth should be taken seriously

Facing the declining number of marriages year by year, many experts say that this is the inevitable product of the economic and social development of the country. The society should respect the individual choice of diversification and individuation, and give more choice of space for the young people.

Shi Zhilei, director of the center for population and health research at Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, believes that the better the regional economic conditions are, the more tolerant the choice of single and individual lifestyle is. The higher the level of development is, the more diversified the society is. No marriage, single or divorce is a personal choice.

Lu Jiehua believes that the Post-80s post-90s are obviously different from 60 after and 70 after. The development of the economy has brought about income growth, and the Internet has improved the level of information. More young people have seen changes in the outside world and learned about the development of the world. For them, getting married and having children is no longer a necessary life experience, but a result of personal choice. He believes that with the changes in social development, people should change their minds and keep pace with the times and give more tolerance to the delay of marriage, the fact of marriage, and the non marriage.

However, compared to 5 years ago, the number of marriages dropped by 1 million 265 thousand, this change is still worth the attention of the government. Lu Jiehua said that in China, marriage and childbearing are closely related, and unmarried childbearing and factual marriage in western countries have not been recognized in China. Therefore, the low marriage rate will affect the fertility rate and birth rate, thereby affecting the population size and structure, and ultimately affect the future economic development of the country.

China has entered an aging society. The data of the sixth census in 2011 showed that the population of 60 years and above accounted for 13.26% of the total population and 2.93 percentage points higher than that of the fifth census in 2000, which highlighted the accelerating status of aging in China. The low marriage rate and birth rate will further deepen the aging society. Experts suggest that, in view of the close ties between the two, the state should attach importance to this issue, earnestly study and introduce corresponding policies to encourage young people to marry and bear children. For example, it is possible to extend marriage leave and maternity leave, and advocate people to balance family and work so as to promote marriage and childbearing. In addition, the government should also introduce family friendly public policies, such as a family based fiscal policy, to reduce the tax burden on families; a large number of outstanding young people have gathered in the first tier cities, but the high price of house prices makes it difficult for many people to start an independent family life when they are young, thus stabilizing house prices and raising the family. Some measures, such as low rent housing, will relieve some of the pressure. Source: Peoples Daily Overseas Edition editor: Han Jiapeng _NN9841

China has entered an aging society. The data of the sixth census in 2011 showed that the population of 60 years and above accounted for 13.26% of the total population and 2.93 percentage points higher than that of the fifth census in 2000, which highlighted the accelerating status of aging in China. The low marriage rate and birth rate will further deepen the aging society.

Experts suggest that, in view of the close ties between the two, the state should attach importance to this issue, earnestly study and introduce corresponding policies to encourage young people to marry and bear children. For example, it is possible to extend marriage leave and maternity leave, and advocate people to balance family and work so as to promote marriage and childbearing. In addition, the government should also introduce family friendly public policies, such as a family based fiscal policy, to reduce the tax burden on families; a large number of outstanding young people have gathered in the first tier cities, but the high price of house prices makes it difficult for many people to start an independent family life when they are young, thus stabilizing house prices and raising the family. Some measures, such as low rent housing, will relieve some of the pressure.