China’s ruling Communist Party, which has imposed birth restrictions since 1980, will now enable couples to have three children rather than two.

The decrease is due to a decrease in the number of working-age residents aged 15 to 59, which fell to 63.3 per cent last year from 70.1 per cent 10 years ago. The proportion of those aged 65 and up increased to 13.5 per cent last year, up from 8.9 per cent a decade before.

China’s 1.4 billion population was anticipated to climax later this decade and begin to decline. However, according to Census data released May 11th, that is occurring quicker than predicted. As a result, underfunded pension and health systems are strained.

In 2015, the one-child limit was lifted, enabling couples to have two children. The next year saw a slight increase in births before declining again. Couples blame the lack of births on the exorbitant expense of having children in China, as well as the necessity to care for their own parents and employment interruption.