Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin is encouraging his fellow countrymen to engage in sexual relations during lunch and coffee breaks at work to address the country’s declining birth rate.
According to a report in UK Daily, “Fertility rate is hovering around 1.5 children per woman, which falls significantly below the 2.1 rate required to maintain a stable population. The Kremlin is worried about its declining fertility rate which has also fallen below the national average.”
Kremlin Worried About Declining Birth Rate
In this regard, Russia’s Health Minister Dr Yevgeny Shestopalov said that employees in the office can use their office breaks and focus on expanding families.
“Being too busy at work is not a valid excuse for avoiding procreation. People could take advantage of breaks to focus on expanding their families. Life flies by too quickly,” the Health Minister noted.
Putin says ‘Fate of Russia Depends on How Many Russians Will Be There’
”The preservation of the Russian people is our highest national priority. The fate of Russia depends on how many of us there will be. It is a question of national importance,” Russian President said on multiple occasions earlier.
Birth Rate Lowest Since 1999
Russia’s birth rate has plunged to its lowest level since 1999, with live births in June dropping below 100,000. This dramatic decline has sparked major concerns in Moscow about a potential severe population decrease. Rosstat, the nation’s statistics agency, reports a substantial reduction in births, with 16,000 fewer children born from January to June 2024 compared to the same period last year.
The ongoing conflict with Ukraine has further exacerbated these demographic challenges, as over a million Russians, mainly young people, have left the country in recent years.
“This is catastrophic for the future of the nation,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying by news agency AFP.
“It [the birth rate] is now at a terribly low level — 1.4 [births per woman]. This is comparable to European countries, Japan, and so on,” he said.
To tackle these challenges, the Kremlin has implemented several measures to increase the birth rate. Women aged 18-40 in Moscow are encouraged to utilize free fertility assessments to evaluate their reproductive health. MP Tatyana Butskaya has suggested policies that would incentivize employers to encourage their female employees to have children.
Putin’s New Plan: Russians Can Have Sex During Office Hours To Tackle Population Crisis world-news World News | Latest International News | Global World News | World News Today
