China's Costly Bet: Paying Women to Have Children

China is confronting one of the most severe demographic declines in modern history, and its leaders are reaching deep into the policy toolbox to stop the slide.

Beijing this year began offering direct cash payments to families for every newborn child, signaling an unprecedented shift in a country once known for its strict population control. The new nationwide program — 3,600 yuan per year (roughly $500) for each child until the age of three — represents the first attempt to provide a unified, state-backed birth subsidy across the world's most populous nation.