EDITORIAL: The waning power of DragonsThe number of newborns each year in Taiwan has become a not-so-happy reminder that the nation’s birthrate is declining. Taiwan had the most births in the 1976 Year of the Dragon, with 425,125 newborns, government data showed. A glimpse of the number of newborns on New Year’s Day suggests that the number of Dragon babies might hit a new low unless the birthrate spikes unexpectedly. The population was 23,415,008 as of November last year, 181,415 more than the same period in 2022, ministry data showed. Are other factors, such as cultural values and social pressures placed on women, playing a bigger role in driving down the rate in Taiwan?
