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Abstract

Policy interventions in response to below-replacement fertility 
Demeny,Paul
Population Bulletin of the United Nations 40/41(special issue: Below Replacement Fertility): 183-193
Publication date: 1999

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This paper discusses policy interventions in response to below-replacement fertility. It is noted that due to the rising concerns about very low fertility rates, interest in policy proposals aimed at reversing the downward trend of fertility was kindled. Such policies aiming to raise fertility had typically involved complex packages of provisions that varied widely from country to country and had been subject to frequent adjustment. Overall, it is noted that the social, pronatalist, and contemporary pronatalist policies have failed to adequately indicate the bewildering variety of specific measures that have in fact been adopted, often half-heartedly but sometimes with greater vigor, under each rubric in virtually all countries. Moreover, in looking at the various policy packages, it should be remembered that the absence or presence of explicit pronatalist objectives, and the stridency or tentativeness with which such objectives, if any are articulated, are very poor predictors either of the scope and generosity of the various services made available to the population under each of the above headings.

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