The government on Friday announced a policy draft of what Prime Minister Fumio Kishida calls “unprecedented steps” to reverse Japan’s declining birthrate, including beefing up child care allowances and expanding scholarships for college education.

The proposals, announced by Masanobu Ogura, the minister in charge of policies for children, also include systems that improve child care services, encourage co-parenting and support single parents.

“I believe our country should aim for a society where young people and those involved in child-rearing today can directly feel the joy of caring for children without feeling anxious about various things,” Ogura said at a news conference. “One that dispels their various anxieties to the fullest extent.”

The proposals will likely be included in new economic and fiscal policy guidelines due out in June. In January, Kishida had instructed related ministries to come up with draft proposals to address the birthrate issue by the end of March.

To support the development of all children, income limits for people eligible for child care allowances will be abolished and the allowance will be extended until the children graduate from high school.

Currently, a child care allowance of ¥15,000 is paid for every child per month until they reach the age of 3. After that a ¥10,000 allowance is provided until the child graduates from junior high school. But families are only eligible for such handouts if their income is below a certain level, which may vary according to the number of children they have.

The Children and Families Agency, to be launched Saturday, plans to strengthen cash benefits for families in order to make child-rearing less of a financial issue, officials said, noting that the number of households with more than one child is decreasing in Japan due to the economic burden of families raising numerous children.

To reduce the financial burden of childbirth for families, the government will also provide a subsidy of ¥100,000 for every newborn. The payout was introduced earlier this year but only as part of the fiscal 2022 supplementary budget, meaning that it was a temporary measure.

In addition, the lump-sum childbirth allowance will be increased from ¥420,000 to ¥500,000, officials said. The allowance is used to cover the cost of childbirth, which is currently not covered by public health insurance. The government is considering ways to have the public health insurance system cover the cost in the future, they said.

Meanwhile, in a major reversal of policy, the central government will stop reducing subsidies for municipal governments that offer free medical care for elementary school-age children and above. Until now, such subsidies have been tweaked to discourage municipalities from offering free medical services for school-age children, on grounds that it could lead to unnecessary medical visits and burden the health care system.

Additionally, the agency, together with municipalities, will examine the possibility of making school lunches free of charge.

Scholarships and student loans for higher education will also be expanded. The government plans to do this by raising the income cap of families eligible for partial exemptions of repayment obligations for “loan-based” scholarships to ¥4 million from ¥3.25 million.

Tuition reduction, exemption and scholarships — which have been offered mainly to low-income households to improve their chances of entering college — will be extended to the middle class, such as households with multiple children and students of science, technology, and agriculture, beginning next year.

A tuition deferment system will be introduced for students studying for their master’s starting in 2024.

The government will also reform child care services.

Currently, many child care services are geared toward parents working full time. The agency plans to offer more flexibility, regardless of whether the parents are working or not.

This would apply to not only day care centers but also kindergartens and other certified child care centers, although the agency notes it would take some time before this system is institutionalized.

The agency also aims to bolster support for companies that employ single parents along with expanding the scope of the benefit system for vocational training and making it easier to use, such as by shortening the qualification period.

In a move to encourage co-parenting, the government will examine introducing a system allowing flexible working hours for parents with children from the age of 3 until they enter elementary school, involving shortened work hours, opportunities for telework or adjusting work schedules.