China’s birth rate unlikely to benefit from influx of Filipino helpers, analysts say

Daniel Yang, a father of two in Shanghai, said for his part he wouldn’t consider hiring a Filipino helper, mentioning several areas of concern.

“There will be big cultural differences, which means all aspects of life need to be adjusted,” said Yang, who employs a Chinese nanny for 9,500 yuan (US$1,333) a month.

The minimum wage is 2,690 yuan a month in Shanghai, the highest in the country.

“I’m also concerned about the safety of my kids [in the care of a foreigner] – should any incident happen, it will draw international attention,” he added.

“The domestic market is developing quite well and sufficient to meet demand. China has enough labour, and I don’t see a gap there for Filipino nannies to fill.”

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China posts record-low birth rate despite government push for babies

The notion of introducing skilled foreign nannies to alleviate parental stresses and encourage births is one of many proposed solutions to a persistent problem. China’s population is shrinking, and with the decline comes questions over what effect the phenomenon will have on the country’s shaky economic growth.

South Korea’s introduction of Filipino helpers to the workforce is part of a plan to address its own birth rates – the lowest in the world. There, an average 0.72 children is expected over a mother’s lifetime in 2023, down from 0.78 the previous year.

A replacement fertility rate of 2.1 children per woman has been estimated for a country’s population to remain constant.

China and South Korea are among the world’s most expensive places to raise children, according to a study by the YuWa Population Research Institute published last year.

However, demographers say that introducing foreign domestic helpers on a similar scale is unlikely to be feasible in