Figures released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications show that on April 1st, for the 25th year running, the number of children in Japan has fallen. A poll is conducted every year to count the number of people aged 14 and under, and is released on 5th May to coincide with Children's Day.

There are 180,000 fewer children than last year, and the total of 17,470,000 is made up of 8,960,000 boys and 8,510,000 girls.

Children 14 and under now comprise 13.7% of the population, another record low, while people over 65 account for a record high of 20.4%. The low is even more than in other aging countries such as Italy and Germany, where children make up 14.2% and 14.5%, respectively, of the population.

A Cabinet Office survey of adults in five countries, conducted last year, found that only 42.6% of Japanese parents with children said they want more children.

Japan ranked lowest among the nations surveyed, with 81.1% of parents in Sweden saying they want more children, compared with 81.0% in the U.S., 69.3% in France, and 43.7% in South Korea.

The survey also showed that Japanese and South Korean fathers are less involved in child rearing than fathers in the three other countries.