The tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan is worried about its declining population and has announced cash incentives to families to produce more children.
Nestled between China and India in the eastern Himalayas, Bhutan, a country of fewer than 800,000 people, is offering families monthly incentives of 10,000 ngultrums (about $105) for every third and subsequent children born on or after June 4 until the child reaches three, the government said in a statement on Thursday.
It will also cover eligible third and more children who were born before but have not yet attained three years of age as of the above date.
Cabinet Secretary Kesang Deki said the incentive would be given to families for any number of children after the second child. “They can have three, four, five, six or seven children,” she told Reuters on Friday.