Band 7+: Q. Nowadays, more and more people decide to have children later in their life. What do you think are the reasons for this? Do the advantages of the trend outweigh the disadvantages?

Currently, more and more families are choosing to have children later in life due to economic hardship and difficulty, as well as the burden of raising a child has on the economic prospects of its parents. I personally believe that the merits outweigh the disadvantages.

The most influential factors for birthing children at later times of life are economic and financial hardships that are the result of the financial crash in 2008 and the COVID-19 pandemic that started in 2020 and lasted for 4 years. Both greatly affected the global economy in permanent ways, and caused families to be more concerned about their financial security and safety. Furthermore, having children greatly impacts the job prospects of their parents, as companies do not want to hire employees who are going to have children in the foreseeable future as potential parents will demand paternity leaves, welfare and paychecks; and are legally obligated to provide such benefits, hurting the companies’ profitability and efficiency.

Regarding the merits of delaying childbirth, this means families have a much better opportunity to build better economic and financial conditions to live a comfortable life. In addition, this enable families to build long-term, stable careers to earn a living. Having children later in life will also motivate families to be more considerate and cautious when having children, and are more invested into their children’s future. Childbirth later in life has several drawbacks, one of which is the risk that is posed to the mother and the child. However, a strong economic background is much more crucial to the child’s future specifically, and the family’s stability in general.

In conclusion, the factors that motivate people to delay childbirth is to the risk that early childbirth can seriously decrease their job opportunities and the many economic hardships that the world has experienced, which will give parents more freedom to build stable career prospects and a reliable source of income, both of which are important for the growth and development of their children.