Band 6+: Parents are delaying childbirth nowadays than in the older days. Why is this? Do the advantages of late childbirth outweigh the disadvantages?

Recently, there has been a profound increase in the number of parents who postpone giving their children birth compared to the past. Main reasons for this trend are due to various options that adults can choose and lower income than in the past. However, while some may strongly disagree, I would firmly argue that the pros do not outweigh the cons as it can bring about a low birthrate and the lack of human workforce.

To begin, there is an argument to be made that an increasing number of people have countless choices in addition to having children. To exemplify, in Japan, due to diversified entertainment, people are not willing to childbirth as they value their spare time, leading them to delay childbirth. Therefore, it is clearly evident that due to the emergence of countless choices, individuals do not select to have children. In addition, in Japan, on account of overwhelming taxes, people cannot afford to have children until they get older. This being the case, it is not unreasonable to assume that if the citizens refrain from having children when they are young.

In terms of whether the pros outweigh the cons or not, I am of the fierce belief that the benefits do not outweigh the drawbacks as the emergence of a low birthrate. To illustrate this point, in Japan, many parents have delayed childbirth, which has boosted the low birthrate in Japan, worsening the Japanese economy significantly. For this reason, it is clearly evident that postponing having children fosters a low birthrate. What is more, it is predicted that more than 100,000 workers will be needed within 10 years in order to recover the Japanese economy. With this in mind, it is undeniable that if Japanese people are unwilling to have children, the Japanese economy will suffer.

To conclude from the aforementioned discussion, the overwhelming evidence seems to suggest that various options and low average income have contributed to delay giving childbirth. In my humble opinion, the pros do not outweigh the cons as this can bring about a low birthrate and the future shortage of workforce.