The Nordic region suffers from low fertility rates, the recent study reveals. The sociologists from the University of Oslo warn that there will be fewer young people to bear the increasingly heavy burden of the welfare state. and this situation could be crucially for the Scandinavian countries economies.
The Nordic region once boasted strong fertility rates, but they are now experiencing a steady decline that could threaten the Scandinavian social welfare model, said the Norwegian prime minister. In other words, the Old Continent is rapidly getting older. That is why Norway needs more children.”I don’t think I need to tell anyone how this is done,” Erna Solberg said openly.
Last decade, too few babies are being born in the Nordic region, say the researchers from the University of Oslo. In the coming decades, a situation will not change dramatically without the active involvement of the Nordic population itself. Prime minister has reiterated this aspect in her New Year’s speech. Moreover, Copenhagen has meanwhile turned its attention to men, who are in less of a hurry to become parents than women, with a campaign aimed at raising awareness about how sperm quality declines with age.
Nordic countries need more kids: the fertility rate is lowest ever
From Copenhagen to the North Cape, from Helsinki to Reykjavik, demographics across the Nordics reveal two things: there are fewer large families, and women are waiting longer before having their first child. There’s no single explanation, but financial uncertainty and a sharp rise in housing costs are seen as likely factors.
The Nordic region already boasts a wealth of family-friendly initiatives, such as flexible working hours, a vast network of affordable daycares and generous parental leave systems. But when all that is still not enough to encourage people to have more children, immigration can be a lifeline — or a threat, depending on the point of view.
But population growth among minorities has also fuelled fears. A former justice minister in Norway, Per-Willy Amundsen of the populist right-wing Progress Party, made headlines when he called for family allowances to be reduced after a third child. His stated goal was to stop Somalis who, he said, had a higher “birth production” rate than “ethnic Norwegians”.
