Almost a dozen regions Russia are going to offer cash payment to young women who give birth, Russian shops report, but there's a pretty big catch.
According to the Moscow Times, cash incentives for childbirth they will be offered in at least 11 Russian regions and will go into effect on January 1, 2025. If a young woman successfully carries a baby to term, she will be paid 100,000 rubles, or about 1,300 Canadian dollars.
The bonuses, which were first announced in several regions over the summer, have strict criteria. While this varies by region, they all require mothers-to-be to be full-time students at a local college or university. In addition, she must be under 25 years of age at the time of delivery.
The claim is also canceled if the mother does not carry the baby to term, meaning a stillbirth would disqualify the woman from receiving the payment.
Last month, the lower house of the Russian parliament voted unanimously to ban what authorities call dangerous propaganda for a childless way of lifein hopes of boosting the declining birth rate, Reuters reports.
Official figures published in September indicate Russian the birth rate is the lowest in a quarter of a century while the death rate increased Moscow's war in Ukraine rages on and the war exodus sees citizens moving abroad. The Kremlin described these figures as "catastrophic for the future of the nation".
President Vladimir Putin said families of three should be the norm in Russia to secure the country's future.
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The ban on childless propaganda it also includes any content that promotes "non-traditional lifestyles" such as same-sex relationships or gender fluidity, as well as dissenting reports about the conflict in Ukraine. Violators face heavy fines.
"We are talking about protecting citizens, especially the young generation, from information disseminated in the media space, which has a negative impact on the formation of people's personalities," said Vyacheslav Volodin, the chairman of the lower house and a senior Putin ally, in November. after the ban was announced.
"We must do everything to ensure that the new generations of our citizens grow up in the spotlight traditional family values.”
In the past month, Russian lawmakers have made sweeping and panic-stricken changes to health policy, as well as offering new cash incentives in an effort to fix low birth rates.
The government has proposed using public funds to pay for newlyweds' honeymoon nights in hotels in the hope of getting pregnant, as well as encouraging women to use breaks from work to have sex with the intention of getting pregnant.
Regional Health Minister Yevgeny Shestopalov said on Russian television in September that women should "engage in childbearing during breaks."
He added to Newsweek: “Being very busy at work is not a valid reason, but a lame excuse. You can engage in procreation during breaksbecause life goes by too fast."
And last year, Newsweek adds, a member of Russia's lower house suggested it female prisoners will be released to give birthwith the hope of increasing the nation's birth rate and having their punishments lifted if they manage to have a child.
It was also announced by the local health authority extension to fertility testingwith some women in Moscow reporting receiving unsolicited referrals to testing clinics.
Russia is not the only country struggling with a low birth rate. According to a Statistics Canada report released in September, Canada's fertility rate was 1.26 children per woman in 2023, which is the lowest level ever recorded since the agency began collecting data.
A StatCan report released in January said Canada, like other countries, is riding a "fertility pandemic roller coaster" with more and more families putting off having children.
© 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
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