An Italian village celebrated its first birth in nearly 30 years, underscoring one of Europe’s worst demographic crises.
Cats outnumber human beings in Pagliara dei Marsi, The Guardian wrote, mirroring national trends: Italy has the highest median age in Europe and saw record low births last year, continuing a 16-year negative trend that Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has pledged to reverse.
While bambina Lara’s parents utilized the government’s one-time payment of about $1,200, in addition to a roughly $400 monthly stipend, they cited childcare access as their biggest challenge. A National Institutes of Health paper found that Europe’s pro-natal subsidies are largely ineffectual by themselves, but may spur fertility when combined with parental leave.
