[Editorial] Responding to declining global fertility rates

00:00 - 10 Jan 2026

The levying of a 13% tax on condoms sold in China from Jan 1 is the country's latest policy aimed at reversing its falling total fertility rate (TFR; the average number of children a woman might expect to have in her lifetime); additionally, couples can claim cash payments of 3600 yuan (US$500) a year for each child younger than 3 years, as part of a scheme announced in July, 2025. China is one of more than half of all countries where the TFR is below 2·1 births per woman, the level required to keep the population stable.