28,000 Chinese Schools Close in One Year

China Closes 28,000 Schools in 2024 as Fewer Children Are Born

China is closing many schools because fewer children are being born. In 2024, the government shut down about 28,000 kindergartens and primary schools, according to a report from the Ministry of Education.

The number of kindergartens went down from 274,400 in 2023 to 253,300 in 2024—a drop of over 21,000. 

This is the third year in a row that the number of kindergartens has fallen. 

Private kindergartens were hit hardest, with 14,000 of them closing.

Primary schools also saw fewer numbers. 

There are now 136,300 primary schools—7,200 fewer than the year before. 

Fewer children are enrolling too. 

In 2024, 2.61 million fewer children started primary school, and the total number of students dropped by 2.15 million.

Preschools saw over 5 million fewer children enrolled, which is a 12.44% drop. 

Experts say this is because the small baby boom after China's two-child policy in 2016 is over, and birth rates are continuing to fall.

There was a small rise in births in 2024, possibly because of delayed family plans or the belief that "Dragon Year" babies are lucky. 

Still, the overall population shrank by 1.39 million, the third year in a row China's population has gone down.

Experts from Peking University believe the number of primary school-aged children will keep dropping. 

It stayed around 108 million in 2022 and 2023 but is expected to fall by 4.13 million in 2024 and go below 100 million by 2026.