First baby born in 20 years in Japan village underscores population crisis

AFP
Oct 28, 2024 | 20:02 IST
Rie Kato and her son Kuranosuke in their house in the village of Ichinono

A two-year-old boy was the first baby in 20 years for a Japanese village where most residents are aged 65 and above and there are life-sized puppets to ease the feeling of loneliness

Ichinono, Japan: Riding his tricycle with cheerful abandon, Kuranosuke Kato is the only child in his tiny, depopulated Japanese village overrun by life-sized puppets.

The two-year-old was the first baby in two decades for Ichinono, one of more than 20,000 communities in Japan where the majority of residents are aged 65 and above, according to the internal affairs ministry data.
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