面臨人口危機的10個國家大綱

衆所周知，日本的人口危機已經將日本推到了懸崖邊緣，然而，世界上面臨人口危機的國家何止日本一個，許多國家都因爲出生率過低、人口老齡化而面臨勞動力不足的困境。在商業內幕網看來，下面這十個國家都面臨不同程度的人口危機。

United States 美國

In the United States, the fertility rate has reached a record low of 1.76. The fertility rate in the United States fell to an all-time low last year. Americans' average life expectancy, meanwhile, sits at a relatively high 78.7 years.

去年，美國的生育率已經降到1.76，創下歷史新低。美國人均壽命相對較高，爲78.7歲。

Many experts say the 2008 economic recession and high college tuition are contributing to this trend.

許多專家表示，2008年的經濟衰退和高額的大學學費是低生育率背後的原因。

According to a 2018 survey in The New York Times, however, adults who want kids say they sometimes end up having few, or zero, kids due to the high cost of childcare. The average cost of full-time childcare exceeds $10,000 a year in several states, according to Child Care Aware of America.

《紐約時報》2018年的一項調查顯示，想要孩子的成年人表示因爲育兒費用太高，所以沒要孩子或者只生育了一兩個小孩。根據美國育兒意識機構的數據，在美國的幾個州，一年的全日托兒費都超過了1萬美元（6.85萬元人民幣）。

The US birth rate has remained below "replacement level" since the 1970s, which means not enough children are being born to keep the population at a steady level.

自從上世紀70年代以來，美國的生育率就一直在更替水平之下，這意味着出生的孩子數量無法讓人口總量保持穩定。

Last year, the US Census Bureau wrote in a paper that women who have kids between the ages of 25 and 35 have more difficulty in getting fair pay than women who give birth outside of that range. American women are now having children older than ever.

去年，美國人口普查局在一篇報告中寫道，在25歲和35歲之間生育孩子的女性相比在其他年齡段生育的女性更難得到公平的薪酬。現在美國女性的生育年齡高於以往。

Spain 西班牙

Spain has more deaths than births each year, and some towns are already nearly abandoned.

西班牙每年的死亡人數都超過出生人數，一些城鎮甚至因人口凋零而被荒廢。

Spanish women tend to give birth later in life than most other European women, and Spaniards also live longer than anyone else in the European Union. On average, women in Spain have 1.5 children.

西班牙女性的生育年齡比多數歐洲女性都更大，而西班牙人的平均壽命又高於其他歐盟公民。在西班牙，女性平均生育1.5個小孩。

In Spain's northeastern Aragon region, one village already shows what a demographic time bomb can look like. The only remaining residents of La Estrella are two people in their 80s.

在西班牙東北部的亞拉貢地區，人口定時炸彈的效應已經在一個名爲拉埃斯特雷的村莊顯現。這個村子最後剩下的兩個居民都是八十多歲。

Last year, the Spanish government hired a special commissioner to determine how to reverse falling birth rates.

去年，西班牙政府任命了一位特別專員來想辦法逆轉生育率下降的局面。

Italy 意大利

A rise in immigration to Italy has not helped the country steer clear of becoming a demographic time bomb.

意大利移民的增加並沒有讓這個國家免於人口危機。

A record-low 464,000 children were born in Italy last year, and the country's mean age has surpassed 45 for the first time ever.

去年，464000名嬰兒在意大利出生，達到歷史新低，而意大利人的平均年齡首次超過了45歲。

Many Italians want to have two or more children, The Local reported, but cite difficulties in finding employment as a factor in their decisions not to.

據《本地人》報道，許多意大利人想要兩個以上的小孩，但是因爲工作難找而決定放棄。

Bulgaria 保加利亞

The population of Bulgaria, the European Union's poorest member, may soon become as low as it was in the aftermath of World War II, Bloomberg reported.

據彭博社報道，作爲歐盟最窮的成員國，保加利亞的人口很快將變得和二戰結束時一樣少。

Bulgaria's population is shrinking faster than any other country in the world; it is expected to hit only 5.4 million in 2050, down from 7 million last year, according to Quartz.

保加利亞的人口下降速度比世界其他國家都快。據Quartz網站報道，去年保加利亞人口爲700萬，預計在2050年保加利亞人口將降至540萬。

In addition, the country has seen an increase in emigration as citizens seek job opportunities elsewhere. Bulgaria's fertility rate is only 1.46 children per woman.

此外，移民國外尋找工作機會的保加利亞人也在增加。在保加利亞，平均每位女性僅生育1.46個孩子。

Latvia 拉脫維亞

Since Latvia joined the European Union in 2004, nearly 20 percent of the country's population has left to seek employment in other parts of the bloc, such as Germany and the United Kingdom.

自從拉脫維亞於2004年加入歐盟，已有近20%的人口離開本國去德國和英國等其他歐洲國家尋找就業機會。

Latvia's population, reported to be nearly 2 million last year, is estimated to fall to 1.52 million by 2050, according to Quartz.

據Quartz網站報道，去年拉脫維亞的人口將近200萬，預計在2050年會降至152萬。

South Korea 韓國

The South Korean government has offered cash incentives to people who have more than one child, as the fertility rate currently sits at 1.26 children per woman – too low to maintain a stable population.

因爲韓國生育率低至1.26，已經無法維持韓國人口的穩定，韓國政府向那些生育一個以上孩子的人提供現金獎勵。

Amid the declining fertility rates, some South Koreans have said they are not having children due to a lack of financial stability, according to Quartz.

韓國生育率一直在下降，據Quartz網站報道，一些韓國人聲稱自己不要小孩是因爲經濟不穩定。

Demographers say South Korea's low fertility rate is linked to women having children at an increasingly later age. In 2017, the average age of a Korean woman having a first child surpassed 31. It was the oldest average in the world.

人口學家表示，韓國的低生育率和女性生育年齡越來越大有關。2017年，韓國女性生育頭胎的平均年齡超過了31歲，爲全世界最高。

Japan 日本

Unlike other countries with similarly low fertility rates, Japan has not seen a significant influx of immigrants. A low number of workers in the country decreases the amount of tax money going toward retirement and healthcare services for older residents, who are growing in numbers.

和其他生育率低的國家不同，日本沒有大量的移民涌入。勞動人口太少導致用於老年人口的養老和醫療的稅金下降，而與此同時老年人口卻不斷增加。

United Kingdom 英國

The United Kingdom's birth rate has fallen to its lowest level in a dozen years, The Times reported. At the same time, the number of British residents age 65 or older is rising due to better healthcare and higher living standards.

據《泰晤士報》報道，英國出生率已經降到了十幾年來的最低點。與此同時，65歲以上的英國居民的數量卻因爲醫療條件改善、生活標準提高而不斷增加。

The UK's referendum to leave the European Union has led to a decrease in the number of immigrants, who are generally younger, leading to an increasingly older population.

英國脫歐導致移民數量下降，而移民人口普遍都比較年輕，使人口老齡化進一步加劇。

According to The Guardian, the number of elderly people without social care has peaked, with one in seven lacking adequate support. About 1.4 million residents who are older than 65 are not receiving help with getting up or getting washed.

據《衛報》報道，得不到照看的老年人數量已達到一個高峯，其中七分之一缺人照料。約有140萬65歲以上的老年人生活起居無人照料。

Singapore 新加坡

Singapore's fertility rate, 0.83, is the lowest in the world.

新加坡的生育率爲0.83，是全世界最低的。

A 2017 report by the Singapore-based United Overseas Bank suggests that the country is on a similar path as Japan. In 2017, for the first time in modern Singapore's history, the percentage of people who were 65 years old or older was equal to the share of residents younger than 15.

新加坡大華銀行2017年的一份報告指出，新加坡可能會陷入和日本一樣的人口危機。2017年65歲以上的新加坡人和15歲以下的新加坡人一樣多，這在新加坡現代史上是頭一回。

China 中國

China's fertility rate keeps dropping despite the government's 2016 decision to allow families to have two children instead of one, so local authorities are taking steps to encourage more childbirth.

儘管政府在2016年放開了全面二胎，但是中國的生育率還是持續下降，因此地方政府正採取措施鼓勵生育。

About 25 percent of China's population is expected to be 60 years or older by 2030, a significant increase compared to the roughly 13 percent of residents who were part of that age bracket in 2010.

約25%的中國人口在2030年前將超過60歲，而在2010年只有約13%的中國人口超過60歲。