birth

Millions of people around the world are unable to have the number of children they desire, and financial constraints, lack of quality healthcare and gender inequality are some of the barriers to reproductive choices, according to a UN report.

The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) unveiled its State of the World Population report on Tuesday, warning that a rising number of people are being denied the freedom to start families due to elevated living costs, wars and lack of suitable partners and not because they reject parenthood.

Roughly 40 percent of respondents cited economic barriers – such as the costs of raising children, job insecurity and expensive housing – as the main reason for having fewer children than they would like, according to the report based on an online survey conducted by the UN agency and YouGov.

Fertility rates have fallen to below 2.1 births per woman – the threshold needed for population stability without immigration – in more than half of all countries that took part in the survey.

On the flip side, life expectancy continues to grow across almost all regions of the world, according to the survey conducted in 14 countries that are home to one-third of the world’s population.

Right-wing nationalist governments, including in the United States and Hungary, are increasingly blaming falling fertility rates on a rejection of parenthood.

But the 2025 State of the World Population report found most people did indeed want children. The survey findings indicated that the world is not facing a crisis of falling birth rates but a crisis of reproductive agency.

How was the study conducted?

UNFPA surveyed 14,000 people from four countries in Europe, four in Asia, three in Africa and three in the Americas.

The study examined a mix of low-, middle- and high-income countries and those with low and high fertility rates.

They were picked to try to represent “a wide variety of countries with different cultural contexts, fertility rates and policy approaches”, according to the report’s editor, Rebecca Zerzan.

South Korea, which is included in the study, has the lowest fertility rate in the world. The report also looked at Nigeria, which has one of the highest birth rates in the world.

The other countries included, in order of population size, are India, the US, Indonesia, Brazil, Mexico, Germany, Thailand, South Africa, Italy, Morocco, Sweden and Hungary.

The survey is a pilot for research in 50 countries later this year.

When it comes to age groups within countries, the sample sizes in the initial survey are too small to make conclusions.

But some findings are clear.

What were the key findings from the report?

According to UNFPA, 39 percent of people said financial limitations prevented them from having a child.

Job insecurity and fear of the future – from climate change to war – were cited by 21 percent and 19 percent of respondents, respectively, for reasons to avoid reproducing.

Elsewhere, 13 percent of women and 8 percent of men pointed to the unequal division of domestic labour as a factor in having fewer children than desired.

Only 12 percent of people cited infertility or difficulty conceiving for not having the number of children they wanted.

That figure was higher in countries like Thailand (19 percent), the US (16 percent) and South Africa (15 percent).

In many cases, there were significant differences in responses depending on which country people were reporting from.

But for Natalia Kanem, executive director at UNFPA, a universal finding from the report is that “fertility rates are falling in large part because many feel unable to create the families they want.”

In South Korea, three in five respondents reported financial limitations as an obstacle to having children.

It was just 19 percent in Sweden, where both men and women are entitled to 480 days of paid parental leave per child, which may also be transferred to grandparents.

Still, birth rates in Sweden are among the lowest in the world.

Zerzan pointed out that one factor alone does not account for falling fertility rates.

“I fully agree with that,” said Arkadiusz Wisniowski, professor of social statistics and demography at the University of Manchester.

“The decision to have a child is complex. Yes, it’s about money. But it’s also about time and access to the right kind of childcare,” he told Al Jazeera.

What role can immigration play?

When deaths outpace births, that is an indication that fertility rates are falling. “That’s not currently true at the global level,” Wisniowski said. “But it is true for numerous countries around the world, especially wealthier nations.”

“And some governments are having to navigate the reality of falling birth rates against the backlash against immigration. Clearly, immigrants can fill labour market gaps, and there is evidence they contribute to economic growth,” he said.

“But it’s no panacea.”

What can governments do about this?

“We can see both the problem and solution clearly,” the UNFPA report noted. “The answer lies in reproductive agency, a person’s ability to make free and informed choices about sex, contraception and starting a family – if, when and with whom they want.”

UNFPA warns against simplistic and coercive responses to falling birth rates, such as baby bonuses or fertility targets, which are often ineffective and risk violating human rights.

“We also see that when people feel their reproductive choices are being steered, when policies are even just perceived as being too coercive, people react and they are less likely to have children,” Kanem said.

Instead, the UN body urged governments to expand choices by removing barriers to parenthood identified by their populations.

Its recommended actions included making parenthood more affordable through investments in housing, decent work, paid parental leave and access to comprehensive reproductive health services.

“The recommendations [in the report] are all good,” Wisniowski said. “They would all empower people to try and achieve their family-linked aspirations. But these comprehensive policies will come with a cost.”

For years, labour economists have warned that falling fertility poses a threat to future prosperity because it increases fiscal pressures due to ageing populations – when the number of pensioners in relation to workers rises.

“Governments may need to tax working people more or take on more debt to address the reality of fewer young people,” Wisniowski noted. “But fertility isn’t something that you can easily tinker with. We are facing considerable uncertainty.”

June 4 (UPI) — Argentina’s birth rate has declined by nearly 40% in the last decade, reaching its lowest level in more than 50 years in 2023.

Statistics from the Ministry of Health show that 460,902 births were recorded in Argentina in 2023, representing a 7% decrease from the previous year and a 41% drop compared to 2014, when the highest number of births was 777,012.

The crude birth rate in 2023 was 9.9 births per 1,000 inhabitants, marking a historic low comparable to that of European countries.

A report from the Austral University of Argentina revealed that the national fertility rate has dropped to 1.4 children per woman, well below the generational replacement rate. This implies a trajectory toward population aging and a possible long-term reduction in the total population if the trend is not reversed.

The analysis adds that the percentage of households without children younger than 18 years of age increased from 44% in 1991 to 57% in 2022. Furthermore, single-person households increased from 13% to 25% over the same period, and single-parent households, mostly headed by women, also showed a sustained increase.

President Javier Milei has expressed concern about the declining birth rate in Argentina, attributing it primarily to the legalization of abortion in 2020 and other progressive policies. During his presidential campaign, Milei expressed his intention to repeal the law and even mentioned the possibility of calling a referendum to do so.

So far, this issue has not been part of the government’s agenda. However, under the guise of reducing public spending, Milei’s administration has reduced the distribution of contraceptives and dismantled sexual health programs, delegating these responsibilities to the provinces. In contrast to the continued decline in births, “voluntary and legal interruptions of pregnancy (IVE/ILE)” have increased from 73,000 in 2021 to more than 107,000 in 2023.

Statistics for 2024 and 2025 are expected to continue to rise.

Although Milei points to abortion as a direct cause, experts attribute the decline in birth rates to a multitude of sociocultural and economic factors. Among these factors are inflation, job instability and the high cost of living, which lead many couples to postpone or forgo parenthood.

The average age for having a first child has shifted to 30-34 years, reflecting a trend toward prioritizing academic training and professional development.

Furthermore, among mothers with lower educational levels, births have decreased by 77% since 2005, while among those with higher educational levels, the decrease was 13% and 7%, respectively.

Research by the consulting firm “Sentimientos Públicos” in Buenos Aires reveals that 20% of those younger than 30 do not want to have children, prioritizing other aspects of their lives. This percentage is lower among millennials (between 30 and 44 years old), where it drops to 11%, and 10% of them cite economic reasons.

The sustained decline in birth and fertility rates in Argentina reflects profound demographic transformations, such as the population aging index, which increased from 29 in 1991 to 60.55 in 2025, and the percentage of people over 85 years of age doubled in 20 years. This change poses challenges for the health care system, education, the pension system, and the economy in general.

Cassie is celebrating a new personal milestone: her baby boy with husband Alex Fine has arrived.

The “Me & U” singer on Tuesday gave birth to her third child in a New York hospital, sources confirmed to TMZ and People. She and “MobLand” actor Fine welcomed their newest family member after the former was rushed to the hospital Tuesday and admitted into the labor and delivery unit, according to TMZ.

A representative for Cassie, 38, did not immediately respond to The Times’ request for confirmation and additional information.

The singer (born Casandra Ventura) married Fine, 32, in October 2019 months after meeting him earlier that year at a gym where he worked as a wellness consultant. They also share daughters Frankie, 5, and Sunny, 3.

Cassie announced her pregnancy in February via Instagram, sharing photos from an intimate family photo shoot. She captioned the post — which prominently featured her baby bump and her loved ones surrounding her — with a few emojis, including a blue heart. Fine, also known for the series “American Primeval” and “1883,” said in his own Instagram post at the time that his growing family was the “best gift I could ask for.”

The “Long Way 2 Go” musician enters her newest chapter of motherhood less than two weeks after she testified against ex-boyfriend and disgraced music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs in his federal sex trafficking trial in New York. During her four days of testimony, Cassie shared disturbing allegations about her relationship with the Bad Boy Records boss — including his alleged fits of violence, threats of blackmail and his notorious sexual marathons called “freak-offs.” She sued Combs in the fall of 2023, helping set the stage for additional lawsuits from other accusers, federal raids on Combs’ homes in Los Angeles and Miami and more legal fallout.

“I hope my testimony has given strength and a voice to other survivors and can help others who have suffered to speak up and also heal from abuse and fear,” Cassie said in a statement shared by her attorney Douglas Wigdor. “For me, the more I heal, the more I can remember. And the more I can remember, the more I will never forget.”

Fine, in a statement through Wigdor, also shut down narratives that he saved his wife from Combs. “To say that is an insult to the years of painful work my wife has done to save herself,” he said. “Cassie saved Cassie.”

He added: “She alone broke free from abuse, coercion, violence and threats.”

Fine concluded, noting “this horrific chapter is forever put behind us” and asked for privacy ahead of the arrival of his son with Cassie.

Times staff write Richard Winton and former Times staff writer Nardine Saad contributed to this report.

Now we know what it takes for Jimmy Kimmel to skip a night of work: One of his babies has to have a baby.

Kimmel became a grandfather earlier this week when his oldest daughter gave birth to a girl. In his monologue Tuesday, he joked about his oldest daughter’s age.

“We were supposed to have a show last night, but we didn’t because my daughter had a baby last night. People don’t realize — people know I have two little kids,” he said. “I also have two older kids. My oldest daughter, she’s 83 years old, her name is Katie.”

He also praised Guillermo as a great doula, telling his sidekick, “You were reassuring, you were calm, your hands were so soft.” So you can tell how serious he was being.

Kimmel said it was only the second night, excluding planned vacations and the COVID-19 lockdowns, that he’d taken off in the show’s 22-year history.

Katie and Kevin Kimmel, 33 and 31, are Jimmy’s kids from his 14-year marriage to Gina Kimmel, which ended in 2002.

Kimmel’s kids from his marriage to writer Molly McNearney, whom he married in 2013, are Jane, 10, and Billy, 8. Billy was born with a heart condition that has been discussed regularly on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Katie wed Will Logsdon in 2021.

As for Katie Kimmel’s new baby, proud grandpa Jimmy said she’s “very healthy.” Then he went on to joke about her name, which he stated was Melania, then Melania Thee Stallion, then — in a phone call with his Aunt Chippy — Jo Mama, then Jo Mama Kevin Logsdon.

It was after that last one that Aunt Chippy said, “She didn’t name the baby that! You know, if you don’t stop busting my b—, I swear to God when I die I’m going to come back and haunt you!”

Kimmel then said the name was actually Brangelina, prompting Chippy to order him to hand the phone to his mother.

The baby’s actual name, though, is Patti Joan. “Joan” is in honor of Jimmy Kimmel’s mom, Katie’s paternal grandma.

The talk-show host also started riffing on things he’d learned from his grandfathers and brainstorming things he would have to teach little Patti Joan. Things like shoplifting, skipping traffic by impersonating law enforcement and shooting out one’s bottom dentures like a cash-register drawer.

“You know WD-40?” Kimmel asked the studio audience. “You have to teach them about that.”

A YOUNG mum and her unborn baby tragically died just days after Christmas.

Aleisha Fisher, 29, was found by paramedics at her home in Lancashire after her cousin made a desperate call to 999.

2

2

Aleisha, who was 30 weeks pregnant, was found on her bathroom floor by paramedics who were sadly unable to revive her.

Her baby was also found to have no signs of life.

Aleisha’s family have since given her unborn baby the name Aria May.

The events leading up to Aleisha’s death are largely unknown, but her cousin has said that Aleisha went to sleep on the evening of December 27.

She was found dead a day later.

The 29-year-old is known to have suffered with epilepsy but it is unknown if this is related to her cause of death.

An inquest, aimed at examining the cause of her death, was launched in May 2025.

Ahead of the inquest, Area Coroner Kate Bisset said: “She was last seen alive by her family at around 11pm.

“At around 10am the following morning her cousin woke on the couch and noticed Aliesha was on the floor of her bedroom not moving.

“Paramedics [confirmed death] shortly afterwards. She was 30 weeks pregnant.

“The paramedics sadly confirmed no evidence of life from the baby.

“The final inquest will consider the cause of death and what led to the tragic loss of this young woman and her unborn baby.

“There is no suggestion of self-harm or any deliberate causes of this baby’s death.”

Aliesha’s family posted a touching tribute to their loved one on the website muchloved.com.

The post read: “This site is a tribute to Aliesha Fisher and AriaMay Wright.

“Aliesha is much loved and will always be remembered. Together forever.”

The news comes just days after a woman was arrested in Blackpool for allegedly trying to steal a baby from its parents.

The incident took place near the Blackpool Promenade and sae members of the public stepping in to protect the baby and its parent.

Investigations into the incident are now ongoing.