Tokyo City Hall is developing a dating app to encourage marriage and childbirth

Called “Tokyo Futari Story,” the city hall’s new site is just that: an effort to create couples, “futari,” in a country where it is increasingly common to be “hitori,” or to be alone.

TOKYO — Called “Tokyo Futari Story,” the city council’s new initiative is just that: an effort to create couples, “futari,” in a country where it is increasingly common to be “hitori,” or to be alone.

While there is an online site that offers advice and general information for potential lovebirds, a dating app is also being developed. City Hall hopes to offer it later this year, accessible by phone or web, a city official said Thursday.

The details were still undecided. City Hall declined to comment on Japanese media reports that said the application will require confirmation of identity such as a driver’s license, your tax records to prove your income and a signed form saying you are ready to get married.

Marriage is declining in Japan as the country’s birth rate fell to a record low, according to health ministry data for wednesday. Last year there were 474,717 marriages, compared to 504,930 in 2022, while births amounted to 727,277, compared to 770,759.

Reports also said that the app may ask your height, job and education, but the official denied that anything had been decided.

Nationally, the government has been trying to solve a serious labor shortage by promising cash payments to families with children and supporting daycare centers. It has also relaxed immigration policy over the years to encourage the influx of foreign workers.

During the so-called “baby boom” era of the 1970s, Japan recorded more than 2 million births a year. Like many young adults around the world today, fewer Japanese are interested in old-fashioned marriage or having children.

There are concerns that Japanese work rules tend to lead to extremely long hours and rarely meeting people outside of work. Some say raising children is expensive.

Tokyo City Hall also sponsors events where singles can meet, couples can receive marriage counseling, and where lovers can turn their stories of how they met into manga comics or songs.

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Yuri Kageyama is in X: