Japan’s population is at an all-time low

Japan’s population declined by a historic amount in 2022, according to government data released Wednesday, as the country tries to overcome its persistently low birthrates.

While low birth rates are an issue in many wealthy countries, Japan’s population has been declining for 14 years in a row.

After tiny Monaco, Japan has the world’s second oldest population, and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan was “on the verge of whether we can continue to function as a society” in January.