Japanese Goverment Pay for Speed Dating

Date: 2006 April 26 07:45

Posted by Joe

BBC News are running an article about Japanese Speed Dating. Due to the decline of marriages and childbirth in Japan, the government are concerned to the social and economic impact this will have (no doubt they want to avoid a Roujin Z scenario), so the government have started to sponsor speed dating in the hopes of stemming the tide of the slowing birth rate.

The article mentions that since Japanese women are more career minded and financially independent, getting a husband is not always on the top of their list of priorities.

Aunts used to act as match makers, then office bosses, but now since people spend more time at work they don't really have a chance to meet others, so are willing to pay for a service to do so. The social impact of the declining birth rate can already be seen in Japan as over 2,000 schools have been closed down in the last decade due to lack of children.