PETALING JAYA: To boost Malaysia’s record-low fertility rate and support sustainable population growth, experts say women must be supported through socioeconomic policies and initiatives.

       Firstly, Malaysia should adopt a pro-natalist policy or one which supports high birth rates, said sociologist and gerontologist Dr Wan Ibrahim Wan Ahmad.

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       “Through this policy, women who give birth to many children will get more attention and benefits from the government.

       “Perhaps the problems related to half-pay leave and maternity leave that have to be taken by working women who give birth will no longer arise through such a policy because the birth of many children is seen as helping the development of the country,” he said.

       Even before Covid-19 hit Malaysian shores, battering the economy and further dampening birth rates, the national total fertility rate (TFR) had been declining for decades, from 4.9 births per woman in 1970 to 1.7 in 2020.

       This is below the replacement level of 2.1 children per woman, which is the fertility rate needed to maintain a society’s population size.

       Dr Wan Ibrahim, who is Academy for Civilizational Studies director at Dar al-Hikmah College, attributed the low birth rate to two main factors – the nation’s economic development level; and the high level of urbanisation in most urban centres where childcare cost is high.

       Thus, he said there should be various incentives for families to raise their children.

       “Childcare centres need to be multiplied in the workplace so that women can place their children in the daycare centre during office hours. In this way, women need not worry about the safety of their children. They can concentrate at work as there is someone taking care of their children,” he said.

       Women who give birth should also be given the facility to take paid leave if they face problems regarding the care of their children, he added.

       “Thirdly, there should be free educational facilities for children at the primary level to help cover the rising cost of raising children.

       “Mothers should not have to spend a lot of money on their children’s education if the government wants women to have many children,” he said.

       Dr Wan Ibrahim noted that some developed countries were facing a shrinking population and shortage of productive labour as a result of their anti-natalist policy from decades ago.

       These developed countries have now turned to pro-natalist policies, he said.

       “A lot of incentives have been given to women who give birth and they also adopt an open immigration policy to encourage migration of workers, especially professional and educated personnel to address the problem of labour shortage as well as the problem of the ageing of the labour force,” he said.

       Malaysian Research Institute on Ageing (MyAgeing) senior research officer Chai Sen Tyng said “permanent childlessness” had been a rising trend over the past decade.

       There had been many factors to it, he said, citing that common reasons were the rising cost of living and child-rearing, changing values and priorities, and delays in marriages and lack of support for raising children.

       Chai noted that dual income households would be more financially stable but such couples may still prefer to have fewer children, especially if child support services are not readily available or affordable.

       “Personally, I believe it is about values more than anything else.

       “Having a child is a lot like deciding and committing to a long-term investment, and it is not an easy choice for some. We always ask why couples are not having children, but we rarely ask why people do have children. The answers might be more illuminating.

       “To blame the rising cost of living for not having children is a bit tricky, as it implies the poor should reproduce less,” he said.

       Chai suggested that there be policies on longer parental leave and free or subsidised childcare provision to encourage more women to have children.

       “In countries like Sweden, paternal leave and maternity leave can be swapped as well.

       “And since they pay a special child care benefit tax, they get free childcare services.

       “When children reach the ages of three to six years, childcare provision is free for up to 15 hours a week,” he said.

       He said the Swedish government also provides a monthly child allowance which many parents offset against childcare fees.

       “We can incentivise births by providing cash transfers or some form of child benefits and at the same time, we need to think about old age pension reforms so that the sandwich generation can get some relief,” he said.

       Sandwich generation refers to adults who are responsible for bringing up their own children and for the care of their ageing parents.

       Chai cautioned that an ultra low fertility would have an impact on the labour force and burden of care issues as the ageing population sets in.

       Thus, he said there should be attempts to stabilise the birth rate while at the same time, policies for the ageing population must also be put in place.

       “Over time, as births and deaths are spaced across generations, we can think about how some policies work better for beanpole families,” said Chai.

       Beanpole families refer to those with fewer children and multiple generations of older people such as grandparents, aunts and uncles.

       While the government has already put policies on ageing in place, these policies lack dedicated funding and interministerial coordination and largely remain a federal policy implemented through line ministry offices at district level, said Chai.

       “We have a lot of useful big data that is left unanalysed,” he said, adding that there should also be more consultative and evidence based approaches.