Forging a child-friendly future for Tokyo

In recent years, birth rates have been declining worldwide. 

But children are society’s treasure, and their radiant faces are hope for the future. That is why it is crucial for those of us here today to have a solid “strategy” and maintain a strong “will” to prepare an environment where those who wish to have and raise children can feel confident about doing so, and where children can grow up healthy and strong. This philosophy aligns with the work of the OECD. 

In the Tokyo 2050 Strategy, formulated in March 2025, “Children First” heads the list of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government’s strategies, with top priority placed on implementing relevant policies and measures. These efforts are now bearing fruit. 

While Japan as a whole is struggling to stem the persistent decline in births, the number of births in Tokyo in the first half of 2025 rose for the first time in a decade. It increased by 0.3 percent from the first half of 2024, showing signs of stabilising. 

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A society where those who wish to raise children can do so with confidence

While some argue that demography is destiny, Tokyo is showing that the right policy mix can make a difference, by supporting families and fertility – from meeting a partner through to marriage, pregnancy, birth and parenting. 

For those who wish to marry, Tokyo’s AI-powered dating app now introduces them to potential partners. Since its launch in September 2024, 30 000 people have registered, and 121 couples have tied the knot. And to help women who wish to preserve future fertility, Tokyo now offers egg-freezing subsidies, for which more than 4 000 applications have been received so far. 

In addition to such initiatives that foster support and understanding, measures to transform people’s mindsets are also crucial. Men’s uptake of parental leave remains low, so Tokyo has coined the term ikugyo, literally “the work of raising children,” to reframe parental leave “essential work to cultivate the future,” not time off. In fiscal year 2024, 54.8% of fathers working at offices in Tokyo took parental leave, an increase of over tenfold from 4.5% in fiscal year 2015. 

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Listen to children’s voices – and act on what they say 

Tokyo’s approach also includes listening directly to children. Each year, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government gathers input from 18 000 young people through digital tools, school visits, and community outreach. Their feedback has already informed tangible changes, such as creating ball-game spaces in parks, where they have often been banned. In addition, Tokyo runs an initiative to allow junior and senior high school students to develop and propose policies to the governor. 

Another channel, “Gyutto Chat” (gyutto means holding someone close), offers an anonymous messaging service where children and parents can seek support from psychologists, public health nurses and even graduate students who may be closer in age. It has handled over 7 000 consultations as of November 2025, 90% of which were requested by individuals aged 18 or younger.  

Expanding the circle of child-oriented policies 

Children and teenagers are also central actors in Tokyo’s growing international partnerships. In August 2025, as part of our Teens Square Tokyo Project initiative, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government hosted the Forum of Young Minds, which brought together a total of 36 teenagers from Tokyo and four overseas cities. Over three days, participants engaged in lively discussions on child-oriented policies. 

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Tokyo is also advancing a project that sends delegations of students on overseas visits. Junior and senior high school students from Tokyo have already visited Ireland and Belgium, where they learned about children’s rights and measures to gather the opinions of children in each country. Through these initiatives in which children play central roles, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government aims to broaden exchanges among children to a more global scale. 

Global collaboration among adults shaping child policy is equally vital. In February 2025, Tokyo hosted the inaugural Tokyo Global Forum on Children, bringing senior officials from 13 city and national governments across Asia and Europe to share knowledge on matters such as child participation in policymaking. The next forum, scheduled for February 2026, will focus on adolescent mental health, which affects one in seven adolescents aged 10-19.  

Striving to realise a world where people can excel 

To create a Tokyo filled with children’s smiles where those who wish to have children can do so with confidence, it is necessary to implement measures that can gain the support of citizens. Through our policies that put children first, Tokyo is becoming an ideal environment for parenting, with nearly 90 percent of respondents in one survey believing they live in a family-friendly area. 

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We live in unstable and uncertain times with intensifying climate change and technological evolution that is progressing at an astonishing speed. However, children remain the irreplaceable cornerstone of the future.  

Under the motto of “putting children first,” Tokyo will continue listening to the real voices of children and parents, engaging them in the policies of the future, and using innovative ideas to build a brighter tomorrow.  

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To learn more about OECD’s work on cultivating age-inclusive cities, take a look at the 2025 report Cities for All Ages. Discover more OECD work on urban development and cities.