At a community center in Taipei, a church bulletin board displays family pictures with children showing off drawings of pink lotus flowers, lush trees, ponds and imaginary bears from a drawing contest at the Botanical Gardens. Catherine Wu, a newcomer to the church, noticed something unusual on the board that any outsider might overlook: every family had two or more children. "Are people encouraged to have children around here?" she asked.
In many societies, photos of four-member families wouldn't be much to stop and take notice of. But as of this year, Taiwan has the lowest birthrate in the world, with 1.0 babies born for every woman. According to the Population Reference Bureau's 2009 annual report, Taiwan has now surpassed both Macau and Hong Kong, which have held the lowest spots on the world chart for the past five years. (See pictures of this year's deadly typhoon in Taiwan.)
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