Why Japan Is Paying Women To Move Out Of Tokyo For Marriage

The Japanese government is reportedly mulling a program for fiscal 2025 to financially support single women who want to move out of Tokyo for marriage. The initiative comes to curb the alleged decline of women in rural areas of the country since more of them are settling in the capital city for education or work. Reports state that this migration has resulted in fewer single women in rural areas compared to single men, exacerbating depopulation issues.

Will This Address 'Depopulation' In Rural Japan?

According to the Japan Times, the government hopes to see women settle in rural areas after marriage as the country is seeing a gender imbalance among single people outside Tokyo. The program will reportedly provide up to $7,000 to women who relocate from the great Tokyo area.

The 2020 national census stated that there were about 9.1 million single women aged between 15 and 49 years old in 46 of Japan's 47 prefectures, excluding Tokyo. This is roughly 20% less than the 11.1 million single men in the same age group, with the gap reaching up to 30% in some areas.

In recent years, Japan has been experiencing a demographic challenge with its birth rate gradually decreasing. In 2023, the island country saw its birth rate reach an all-time low, recording only 727,277 births and a fertility rate of 1.20, which is far below the 2.1 needed for a stable population.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has called the falling birth rates the "gravest crisis our country faces." The government has undertaken many initiatives to address the declining population rates--  financial incentives for couples to have children, expanded childcare facilities, etc.

Recently, the government also launched an artificial intelligence-equipped matchmaking app to pair single people in the country. "If there are many individuals interested in marriage but unable to find a partner, we want to provide support," a Tokyo official told the Japanese news outlet, Asahi Shimbun.