China's population grows to 1.41 billion

Beijing announced on Monday that China's population grew 5.4% over the last decade.

China's population has grown more than five percent over the past 10 years to pass 1.4 billion people, according to the census figures published by the country's National Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday.

According to a statement by China's Bureau of Statistics, the head of the Bureau of Statistics Ning Jizhe revealed: "the data showed that the population of China maintained a mild growth momentum in the past decade."

"The boost of 5.4 percent over the last 10 years comes amid fears that an aging population and a slowing birth rate pose a major challenge for the country," the statement added.

Notably, this is the first time that most of the data were conducted online and it recorded the slowest growth rate since the 1960s.

According to China's media, the 2020 survey was completed in December with the help of over seven million volunteers who surveyed residents door-to-door.

Beijing changed family planning rules in 2016 to allow families to have two children as fears grew about China's fast-aging population and shrinking workforce. However, there has been growing concern that the policy change is yet to produce the expected baby boom to help offset the country's aging population.

It's worth mentioning that China conducts a census every ten years to determine population growth, movement patterns, and other trends. Nowadays, this annual data plays a major role in government policy planning.