Falling births are an Asian regional issue, with the costs of raising children dampening birthrates in neighboring South Korea and China. But Japan’s situation is especially critical.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has pledged “unprecedented measures” to boost the birthrate, including doubling the budget for child-related policies, and says maintaining the educational environment is crucial.Births tumbled below 800,000 in 2022, a new record low, according to government estimates and eight years earlier than expected, dealing a knockout blow to smaller public schools that are often the heart of rural towns and villages.
Ten-ei, a village of just under 5,000 residents with only around 10% under the age of 18, is in a quiet rural area known for its rice and sake. The Yumoto area has hot spring inns on the mountains and is dotted with ski rental shops and campsites. There are also “beware of bears” signs. The Yumoto school, a two-storey building located in the center of the district, had some 50 graduates a year during its heydey in the 1960s.
Their desks sat side-by-side in the center of a classroom designed for 20, and during their first year they “fought a lot”, Eita said. “People are very disappointed there’s no longer a source of culture,” said principal Mikio Watanabe of the decision to close, taken in consultation with village residents. “The place will be quieter without children’s voices.”
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