Wujiang, Suzhou: Projected Number of Births in 2025 Exceeds 7,000

According to an article on the official website of the Wujiang District Government, population development serves as the foundation for regional economic and social progress, and the scale of births is a key indicator of regional vitality and future potential. Over the past decade, the total number of births in Wujiang District has shown a fluctuating downward trend. After peaking at 15,563 individuals in 2016, it entered a sustained decline. The projected number of births for 2025 is around 7,000, marking the lowest point in the past decade and representing a drop of over 50% compared to 2016. "This trend indicates that dominant social factors are suppressing fertility willingness far more than the stimulative effects of fertility policies."

According to the Wujiang District Health Commission, comparing birth data over the past decade at the national, Jiangsu provincial, and Wujiang District levels, Wujiang saw a 26.5% increase in births from 2015 to 2016, higher than the national increase of 7.9% and Jiangsu’s increase of 8.2%. The decline from the peak (2016) to the lowest point (2023) over the past decade was 46.6% in Wujiang, lower than the national decline of 49.5% and Jiangsu’s decline of 47.4%. This reflects that Wujiang is more sensitive to the second-child policy compared to the national and provincial levels, while experiencing a smaller decline in births. This is closely linked to the region’s higher socio-economic development level and marital practices such as "living at both ends" in southern Jiangsu.