Russian Women Are Offered Cash to Bear Children
Concerned about a population decline, the region surrounding Russia’s fourth-largest city has begun offering cash rewards to women who bear children.
The modest payments are not likely to make female residents of Nizhny Novgorod want to rush out and get pregnant, however.
Under a newly issued regional decree reported Saturday by the Itar-Tass news agency, mothers will be paid the equivalent of $225 for their first child and $292 for their second.
The region’s mortality rate is two times the birthrate, according to the news agency.
The city of Nizhny Novgorod, 250 miles east of Moscow, has about 1.4 million residents, trailing only Moscow, St. Petersburg and Novosibirsk in population size.
Many Russian couples choose not to have children because of continuing economic turmoil in the country, where the average monthly income remains only about $100.
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