Overview

• The Oryol region in western Russia has implemented a policy offering a 100,000-ruble allowance to schoolgirls who register their pregnancies, with no age limit specified.
• This initiative expands a December 2024 decree by Governor Andrey Klychkov, which had previously applied to students in general and vocational schools.
• Approximately half of Russia's regions have introduced similar financial incentives to encourage childbirth as part of government efforts to address declining birth rates.
• Russia's demographic crisis is driven by factors such as low birth rates, high emigration, and war-related casualties, with independent experts questioning the accuracy of official population figures.
• Critics argue that these measures disproportionately burden women, as officials, including Health Minister Mikhail Murashko, publicly advocate for early motherhood over education and careers.