North Korea's Kim Jong-un calls for action on falling birth rates

The United Nations Population Fund estimates that as of 2023 the fertility rate, or the average number of children being born to a woman in North Korea, stood at 1.8, amid an extended fall in the rate during recent decades. "Preventing a decline in birth rates and good childcare are all of our housekeeping duties we need to handle while working with mothers," Kim said at an event for mothers in Pyongyang on Sunday. The North Korean leader thanked mothers for their role in strengthening national power.