The government plans to create a database of child care support systems in 1,741 municipalities nationwide before the end of the current fiscal year ending in March, sources said.
The system will provide data for use by child care support apps developed by private companies in order to disseminate essential information to parents.
The objective is to ensure that individuals with children do not miss out on available benefits or overlook taking their children for health checkups.
Child care support measures and ways to apply for them differ according to each municipality, and it takes time and effort for parents and guardians to gain necessary information by themselves.
The government hopes to reduce the burden on parents by collecting and sending out information through notifications.
The newly created database is expected to provide a wide range of information, including details on measures such as childbirth and child care lump-sum grants, subsidies for babysitter fees, infant feeding lessons and financial assistance provided to children whose parent have died.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has already started a trial project to create such a database and the central government will proceed while referring to Tokyo's initiative.
The nationwide database will be linked to apps for maternal and child health handbooks, as well as communication notebooks for parents and nursery teachers, offered by private companies.
Because child care support measures vary depending on a child's age and the household's income, the government plans to prioritize measures for preschool children.
After the government completes the database, it will ask each municipality to update it at least once a year so that parents and guardians can obtain the latest information.