China formally eases one-child policy

The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress passed a resolution allowing couples to have two children if either parent is an only child.

China's one-child policy

• China's population-control policy was introduced in 1979 and restricts couples in urban areas to only one child
• In rural areas, families are allowed to have two children if the first is a girl.
• Other exceptions include ethnic minorities and couples who both lack siblings themselves
• The policy has meant that about one-third of China's 1.3 billion citizens cannot have a second child without incurring a fine
• Campaigners say it has led to forced abortions, female infanticide, and the under-reporting of female births
• It is also implicated as a cause of China's gender imbalance

The changes in policy were announced following a meeting of top Communist Party officials in Nov 2013

The reforms, which came at the end of a six-day meeting of the congress, have already been tested in parts of the country

Note
China introduced its one-child policy at the end of the 1970s to curb rapid population growth

China is now believed to have a birth rate of just over 1.5 children per woman of child-bearing age - which is, in fact, higher than many of its regional neighbours, including Taiwan, Japan and South Korea.

Niger has the world's highest birth rate per woman, with over seven, India has 2.55 and the US has 2.06.