China's New Year Gift: Two Child Per Family

The Chinese New Year celebration begins this weekend, and this year Chinese citizens have an extra reason to celebrate.
For the first time since 1979, China is now allowing families to grow beyond one child.
China is the world's second largest country with more than 1 billion people. It's estimated the number might reach 2 billion by 2030.
For decades, the Chinese government tried to control the meteoric population growth by limiting families to one child.
Its initial purpose was to keep a balance between males and females.
But according to the China National Census, by 2014 the ratio became unbalanced with 115 males for every 100 females. Population experts believe by 2030 there won't be enough women in China for men to marry.
And that means fewer Chinese families.
The single-child policy had been carried out for nearly 40-years. But starting last month, the Chinese government implemented a law that allows families to have two children instead of one.
Many Chinese couples are excited about the change, looking forward to getting married and having bigger families. And government officials hope the new policy can gradually fix the skewed gender ratio.
Lily Ren was married six years ago and is excited about the new law. She says it is like a dream come true for her and her husband.
"Both my husband and I love children and we think having two children will make all our parents happy. I believe the value of building a family is to have more children. When they grow up together, they will understand the meaning of sharing with others in a family. I don't have to teach them much," Ren said.
Meanwhile, the new law may cause some families to rethink their priorities.
Chinese family pride mostly comes from their child's success. Parents used to be able to concentrate on the only child in the family. The revision means Chinese parents now may have to choose between raising two children, or keeping their jobs.
One resident on the streets of Beijing said, "No policy is perfect. If you want to have a bigger family and feed everyone, you have to make tough decisions. You have to know which is more important, a job, or raising the children. It is impossible to accomplish both."
No matter how challenging a larger family may seem, Chinese parents now may choose to have more than one child. The new policy is giving the Chinese people hope that they can expand their family in a bigger way in the future.