[general] another scoop from iceland

A study in Eurostat report that Icelandic women are the most fertile in Europe in 2004. The birth rate per woman in Iceland is 2.03. Irish women come in number two at 1.99 and French women number three at 1.90. Morgunbladid reports on this.

All these fertility rates are too low to maintain a steady population number. To do that the rate has to be 2.1 per woman. The birth rate is lowest in Eastern Europe. Slovenian women have 1.22 children on the average and Czech women only have 1.23 children on the average.

In some countries the benefits for families have been increased to encourage women to have more children. Increase child allowance was part of the economic agreement announced in Iceland last month, but the stated purpose was not to increase the number of children but rather to meet the needs of big families.