Japan's child population falls for 44th straight yr to new record

Japan's estimated child population has shrunk for the 44th straight year to a new record low, government data showed Sunday, as the country struggles to reverse the declining trend of births.The number of children under 15, including foreign residents, was 13.66 million as of April 1, down 350,000 from a year ago, according to data released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications before the national Children's Day holiday on Monday.The ratio of children to the overall population fell 0.2 percentage point to 11.1 percent, also the lowest since comparable data became available …READ FULL ARTICLE