Hong Kong could become global model for low-fertility societies, UN official suggests

A former United Nations resident coordinator in China has urged Hong Kong to transform its record-low fertility rate into a global demonstration project by pursuing "Child Friendly City" status under a UN initiative.

Siddharth Chatterjee, who served in the role from 2021 until March and now advises the Hong Kong Committee for Unicef, told the South China Morning Post the city could create a "pioneering blueprint" if it earns the designation. Rather than viewing demographic decline as purely a crisis, he said the challenges facing Hong Kong position it to become a "model" for other jurisdictions wrestling with similar trends.

Among world's lowest birth rates

Hong Kong recorded just 0.73 births per woman in 2025, ranking second-lowest among 236 territories tracked by UN data, ahead only of Macau. The fertility rate places the city among a growing number of developed economies struggling with shrinking populations.

Chatterjee's proposal centres on leveraging the city's demographic pressures to pilot child-centric policies that could be replicated elsewhere. The "Child Friendly City" framework is part of a broader UN initiative, though the interview did not detail specific requirements for earning the status.

His remarks reframe Hong Kong's demographic challenge as an opportunity to test solutions that other low-fertility jurisdictions might eventually adopt, turning a pressing local problem into a laboratory for international policy innovation.

Source: South China Morning Post