Without a higher birthrate, Japan would “eventually cease to exist, said the king of controversy, Elon Musk.

The billionaire tweeted, “At risk of stating the obvious, unless something changes to cause the birth rate to exceed the death rate, Japan will eventually cease to exist. This would be a great loss for the world.”
Musk’s tweet has set off a flood of sarcasm and anger, with people asking what is the point behind this tweet to others agreeing with the Tesla CEO.
Others pointed out that low birth rates are a problem in many countries, including Germany, where Tesla recently constructed a new facility, and that Japan was simply being affected first.
In 2021, for the 11th consecutive year, the country has faced a steady decline in its population.

As of October 1, the country’s population stood at 125.5 million, down 644,000 from a year earlier. While there were 831,000 births in Japan in 2021, there were also 1.44 million deaths.

Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, says that this reduction was the largest since comparable data became available in 1950, reports Kyodo News.

Japan is dealing with two problems: a shrinking workforce and an ageing population.

While the rate of decline has slowed in recent years, thanks to an increase in foreign employees arriving under a more liberal visa system, coronavirus has had a detrimental impact, preventing firms facing labour shortages from hiring foreign workers.

A community with a higher proportion of senior citizens can be less appealing to businesses. Business owners face a shortage of qualified workers, while the country’s economy suffers without foreign businesses.