Japan Sets Record For Babies Born To Foreign Parents As Anti-Immigration Backlash Grows

Japan’s health ministry says 22,878 babies were born to foreign parents in 2024 (just over 3% of all births), a 50% rise over the past decade, while overall births to Japanese parents fell. Foreign residents reached a record 3.77 million—many of childbearing age—fueling a sharp political backlash to migration following the “African Hometown” controversy and gains by anti-immigration parties. The trend highlights a policy squeeze between chronic labor shortages and voter resistance to immigration.