COVID-19 pandemic exerted a significant impact on birthrates in the capital of Argentina, Buenos Aires.
The rates dropped by a quarter since the outbreak of COVID-19 in early 2020. The city of romance and tango dance witnesses a severe outbreak of COVID-19.
Their life-long dream was to have a child. But COVID-19 says otherwise. The couple changed their mind after the catastrophic impact COVID-19 created.
“Uncertainty is the most difficult thing we face,” said Cacciola and Becerra.
The 32-year-old lawyer lost his job in the crisis, which adversely affected their finances. His 38-year-old girlfriend, Becerra, was concerned about going to medical appointments during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Becerra stated, “Being a mother had to be postponed a bit due to our professional issues, and last year due to an economic issue for both of us and just everything that happened.”
Drops in birth rates are not new to Argentina, as they dropped in 2016 onward. However, such drops doubled during COVID-19 times. According to official data, Buenos Aires witnessed a 25%-fall compared to that of 2020.
Gynaecologist and sexologist Silvina Valente stated, “I hear a lot of people say: ‘How can I bring a child into this world?’ reflecting on the stress from and fear of the pandemic.
Mexico, Brazil, and Colombia witnessed huge drops in birthrates, compared to 2020. While Mexico saw a 15.1% drop, Brazil registered the lowest number of births since compiling data in 2003.
Likewise, Colombia saw a 17.4% drop in birth rates, but rates started to bounce.
The director of Buenos Aires province’s registry of persons, Patricio Zalabardo, talked about the amount of stress COVID-19 exerted on family decisions. “The pandemic impacts a lot of decisions in family life, and obviously, it impacted the decision to have children,” said Patricio Zalabardo.
Argentina has lifted some restrictions, as it provided around 30 million vaccines for a 45-million people. This brings hope that some families may get back to bring children.
As Cacciola hold new positions, the couple is looking for a bigger place, easing the conditions to start a family.
“Things have begun to get back into some order, and there are fewer restrictions on social activities and medical appointments,” said Claudia Becerra. “So this year, we are going to decide to have a baby.”
