Japan's total fertility rate is low compared to international standards

• The total fertility rate in Japan in 1997 was 1.39, and has been falling over the long term. Japan's rate is now the second lowest, after Germany, among developed nations (Figure 23).

Figure 23: Total fertility rates by country

Notes:

Total fertility rate is obtained by adding up the quotients obtained by dividing the number of births by the female population for each age between 15 and 49.

Source:

Latest Demographic Statistics 1998, National Institute of Population and Social Security Research

Japan's infant mortality rate is low compared to international standards

• Japan's infant mortality rate in 1997 was 3.7 deaths per 1,000 births, which is low even compared to international standards.

The perinatal mortality rate

• Japan's perinatal mortality rate in 1997 was 4.2 (deaths per 1,000 births), which is low even compared to international standards.

The maternal mortality rate

• Japan's maternal mortality rate in 1986 was 13.5 (deaths per 100,000 births), a rather high rate compared to other developed countries. Subsequently, the rate continued to decrease, until it reached 6.5 in 1997, which is about the same level as that of other countries.

Japan has a high abortion rate

• The percentage of abortions among all pregnancies (obtained by adding number of births and number of artificial abortions) in Japan in 1997 was 22.1%, which is high compared to other developed countries.

Japan has a 60% contraception usage rate

• Japan's contraception usage rate (percentage of currently-married women between the ages of 15 and 49 practicing some form of contraception) of about 60% is low compared to other developed countries (Figure 24). Also, quite low is the rate of usage of modern methods (sterilization, oral contraceptives, IUDs, condoms, diaphragms and other methods which can be obtained from medical institutions and pharmacies), which at 53% is the lowest among the countries surveyed.

Figure 24: Rate of contraceptive use by country

Notes:

1. The rate of contraceptive use is the percentage of currently married women between the ages of 15 and 49 practicing some form of contraception.
2. The overall rate of contraceptive use in the UK is not known.

Source:

Compiled from data in the Demographics and Health Survey and various other materials, Population Division of the United Nations