China is preparing for 2 million extra babies a year as a result of a loosening of its “one child” birth limits that will allow more couples to have two children, health officials said on Thursday.
The ruling Communist Party introduced birth limits in 1980 to curb population growth and demand for water and other resources. Most urban couples are allowed one child and face fines and other penalties for additional births.Pressure to enforce limits has led local officials to force women to abort foetuses or to be sterilised, even though such measures are illegal.
The party announced in November that couples in which one parent was an only child would be allowed to have a second baby in some areas. Previously, both parents had to be an only child to qualify for this exemption.China already faces a shortage of maternity beds, said Wang Guoqing, a Deputy Minister of the National Health and Family Planning Commission.