39
Russia paying schoolgirls to have babies
In a move that has sparked global outrage, Russian authorities are now offering schoolgirls a one-off payment of £950 ($1,200) to have children, as the country faces a dire population decline following its war in Ukraine. The controversial policy, first introduced in the Oryol region, targets girls in full-time education, including those as young as 15, and is part of a broader state-backed initiative to combat Russia's falling birth rate and staggering wartime losses.
I can't see how this won't result in Taliban-style economic failure. Russia has a shortage of skilled people. They should be encouraging girls to go into fields that are usually dominated by men. Not unlike the way women entered those fields during WW2. And what would such a small sum even cover?
According to a report by the New York Post, Russia has lost an estimated 250,000 soldiers since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with total casualties reportedly nearing 900,000. The Kremlin, under President Vladimir Putin, has since doubled down on efforts to incentivize childbirth, urging Russian families to have at least three children.
What's that supposed to achieve, exactly? These babies wouldn't be useful for at least 20 years. You don't have enough people to work jobs that will support all these kids.
Oryol, a region roughly 200 miles south of Moscow near the Ukrainian border, has become the first to extend the childbearing incentive scheme to school-age girls. Regional Governor Andrei Klychkov confirmed the extension in an official statement on the region's website, amending a decree that previously only applied to university students.
Yeah, so the plan is to put these girls into poverty where their children will be raised in poverty and when these children are grown......what then? There's plenty of research on the cyclical nature of poverty. Sabotaging a girl's education is unlikely to produce a skilled worker of any sort later.
Girls in full-time education—including those enrolled in general education institutions, vocational colleges, and universities—will now be eligible for a payment of 100,000 rubles (£950) if they become pregnant and give birth between 2025 and 2027.
Is Russia even cheaper living than Afghanistan?
Klychkov insisted there were currently no girls in the region falling under the scheme's eligibility.
So why do you have it?
Nonetheless, he maintained that the policy's intent was to provide support for young mothers, stating: 'As for my personal stance on this policy, it is important to recognise that young women in such situations often face difficult decisions. Our responsibility, given the circumstances, is to provide support—helping them preserve the life of the child and safeguard the mother's health.'
Ah, the "we're just trying to protect mothers" thing. Yeah, you're not offering full health coverage or daycare, you're offering loose change.
Putin has publicly condemned 'child-free' lifestyles as extremist and criminalised abortion in some cases.
Most women want to become mothers. Truly childfree women are rare. People only make that decision en masse when circumstances suck just that much. Putin never improved his country's economy. People have to struggle too hard just to support themselves. The easiest way to reduce expenses is to not have children.
He has also increased cash payouts for mothers willing to bear more children, with the hope that Russia's birth rate will climb again by 2027.
How would that help, though? You're sending the fathers off to war. Throwing loose change at these women won't make up for the income they'll lose being widows with young children.
Historically, Russia's fertility rates have seen sharp declines during and after major conflicts.
Well, Putin......there's your answer. You had the data, but you chose this needless conflict anyway.
With the Kremlin's commitment to boosting population numbers showing no signs of slowing, and with policies like this gaining traction at the regional level, many fear that what is currently a controversial initiative could become the new norm.
I mean.....it's not even going to work. Russia will eventually try what Nicolae Ceausescu did, and will get the same results. You're not going to get useful workers out of this, which is what you want/need. You'll get cognitively disabled people raised in orphanages, or criminals in many cases. Romania is still suffering the fallout from this.
Iran's regime is decaying rapidly because the older generations are overwhelmed with young people. If you want your regime intact for the next generation, you do NOT want to be swamped with young people. If they outnumber the older generations, you're screwed.
Putin can send more and more ethnic minorities to Ukraine. In which case it will make sense to defect and will result in more Islamic terrorism (which for once I'd be sympathetic). OR he can cut his losses and pull out of Ukraine. Even if he wins it it's not worth it.