2 – Denmark
News
Sex-starved nations where govt. beg their citizens to make love
THOUGH, this might sound ridiculous, but do you know that there are countries where citizens are being begged by the government to have more sex? Have a look at the sex-starved nations. There are few things more important than fertility in determining a nation’s future viability. Demographers suggest that a country needs a fertility rate of just over two children per woman to hit “replacement fertility”, the rate at which new births fill the spaces left behind by deaths. But because of certain cultural and economic forces, only about half of the world’s 224 countries currently hit replacement fertility.
For those that don’t, they, however encourage people, particularly their citizens to have sex. It is also imperative to note that encouraging people to have sex can involve strategies that range from highly explicit to downright bizarre.
Check out the list of such countries;
1 – Romania
The 1960s in Romania were a perilous time for couples. Population growth flatlined, prompting the government to impose a 20% income tax for childless couples and to implement provisions that made divorce nearly impossible. The idea was: If you weren’t contributing to the communist state by creating future laborers, you had to contribute with dollars instead. The 1980s weren’t much better, however — women faced forced gynecological exams that were performed by “demographic command units” to ensure pregnancies went to term. When Romanian leadership changed in 1989, the brutal policy finally came crashing down. But at 1.31 children per woman, the fertility rate is still well below replacement.
if you aren’t going to have a kid for your own family, Danes are told, atleast do it for Denmark. No, literally, do it for Denmark. The small Nordic country has such a low fertility rate of about 1.73 children per woman that spies, Rejser, a Danish travel company, has come up with ingenious incentives to persuade women to get pregnant. First, it offered to provide three years’ worth of baby supplies to couples who conceived on a vacation booked through the company. Now it has come up with a se’xy campaign video titled “Do it for Mom,” which guilt trips couples into having kids to give their precious mothers a grandchild.
3 – Russia
Vladimir Putin once brought Boyz II Men to Moscow to rile men up right before Valentine’s Day. Can anyone blame him? As Tech Insider recently reported, the country is experiencing a perfect demographic storm. Men are dying young. HIV/AIDS and alcoholism are crippling the country. And women aren’t having babies. The problem got so bad that in 2007 Russia declared September 12 the official Day of Conception. On the Day of Conception, people get the day off to focus on having kids. Women who give birth exactly nine months later, on June 12, win a refrigerator.
4 – Japan
Japan’s fertility rate has been below replacement since 1975. To offset that decades-long trend, in 2010 a group of students from the University of Tsukuba introduced Yotaro, a robot baby that gives couples a preview of parenthood. If men and women begin thinking of themselves as potential fathers and mothers, the students theorized, they’ll feel emotionally ready to take a stab at the real thing.
5 – Singapore
Singapore has the lowest fertility rate in the world, at just 0.81 children per woman. On August 9, 2012, the Singaporean government held National Night, an event sponsored by the breath-mint company Mentos, to encourage couples to “let their patriotism explode.” The country has also placed a limit on the number of small one-bedroom apartments available for rent to encourage people to live together and, presumably, procreate. Each year the government spends roughly $1.6 billion on programs to get people to have more sex.
6 – South Korea
On the third Wednesday of every month, South Korean offices shut their lights off at 7 p.m. It’s known as Family Day. With a fertility rate of just 1.25 children per woman, the country takes any steps it can to promote family life — even offering cash incentives to people who have more than one child.
7 – India
India as a whole has no problem with fertility — the country’s ratio of 2.48 children per woman is well above replacement. But the number of people in India’s Parsis community is dwindling — it shrank from roughly 114,000 people in 1941 to just 61,000 in 2001, according to the 2001 census.
That problem led to a series of provocative ads in 2014, including one that read “Be responsible — don’t use a condom tonight.” Another, geared toward men who lived at home, asked, “Isn’t it time you broke up with your Mum?” The ads seem to be working: By the latest measure, the population has inched back to 69,000.
8 – Italy
With a fertility rate of 1.43 — well below the European average of 1.58 — Italy has taken a controversial approach to encourage citizens to have more kids. As Bloomberg reports, the country has been running a series of ads reminding Italians that time might be running out and that kids don’t just come from nowhere. “Beauty knows no age, fertility does,” one ad said. “Get going! Don’t wait for the stork,” another said. Couples haven’t responded positively to the guilt trip. Francesco Daveri, a professor of economics at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, has called the ads a failure.
9 – Hong Kong
With a fertility rate of just 1.18 children per woman, Hong Kong faces the same challenge as many industrialized countries: Without enough young people to replace aging citizens, populations are dwindling and economic growth is slowing. In 2013, the country proposed giving cash handouts to couples to encourage them to have kids. The idea took its cue from Singapore, where parents receive a “baby bonus” of about $4,400 for their first two children and $5,900 for their third and fourth. But in Hong Kong, the plan never came to life.
10 – Spain
Funny couple in bed
Fertility rates in Spain are creeping downward while unemployment is rising: About half of all young people don’t have a job. It’s the second-highest rate in Europe, behind Greece.
To combat the worrying trends, the Spanish government hired a special commissioner, Edelmira Barreira, in January 2017. Her first tasks are finding the myriad causes of the trend and devising macro strategies to reverse it . “We have a lot of work ahead of us,” Barreira told the Spanish newspaper Faro De Vigo. Source: Pocket News
This article originally appeared on Eagle Headline
The Minister-designate for Power, Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe, has firmly clarified that he never promised to fix Nigeria’s national electricity grid within three months, describing such claims circulating in sections of the media as a misrepresentation of his Senate screening remarks.
A statement issued after his appearance before the Senate stressed that Tegbe was deliberate and cautious in his presentation, avoiding unrealistic timelines while outlining a structured reform pathway for the power sector.
According to the clarification, Tegbe explained that while Nigerians can expect early signs of progress, particularly in grid stabilisation within his first 100 days in office, comprehensive reforms will be guided strictly by technical assessments, stakeholder consultations, and sector realities.
He noted that critical challenges such as gas supply constraints, metering gaps, infrastructure decay, and commercial inefficiencies require coordinated interventions that cannot be resolved through arbitrary timelines.
“My commitment to this distinguished chamber and to Nigerians is clear: we will deliver visible and measurable improvement in the power sector,” Tegbe stated during the screening.
He assured that his focus would include stabilising the national grid, modernising transmission and distribution infrastructure, strengthening commercial frameworks, and enforcing accountability across the electricity value chain.
On tariff policy, the minister-designate reaffirmed that reforms would be carefully designed to balance sustainability with social protection, ensuring that vulnerable households are shielded while also restoring investor confidence in the sector.
The statement further emphasised that Tegbe’s approach reflects discipline, technical understanding, and a reform-minded agenda aimed at delivering lasting solutions rather than short-term political promises.
It added that he remains open to responsible media engagement and constructive clarification where necessary, noting that accurate reporting is essential to public understanding of ongoing efforts to reposition Nigeria’s power sector.
Tegbe reaffirmed his readiness to lead a transparent, results-driven reform process anchored on accountability, realism, and measurable progress.
A grand cultural renaissance celebrating the enduring legacy of legendary Yoruba war hero and statesman, Ogedengbe Agbogungboro, will take centre stage as the 2026 edition of Ogedengbe Fiesta holds from July 29 to 31 across Osun State and Ekiti State.
The three-day heritage festival, unveiled by organisers on Wednesday, is themed, “Ogedengbe Agbogungboro Legacy: Leadership, Security, and Statecraft for Modern Governance in Nigeria.”
The event is designed to preserve Yoruba cultural heritage, deepen historical consciousness, promote tourism and stimulate national conversations on leadership, peacebuilding and governance.
According to the organisers, the fiesta will commence with traditional homage at Atorin and heritage excursions to notable Kiriji War historical sites in Imesi-Ile, where participants will relive significant moments in Yoruba military and political history.
The programme will also feature guided visits to the historic Ogedengbe Cave, Ibu Latoosa Site and the Yoruba Peace Treaty Grove, all regarded as symbolic monuments of Yoruba resilience, diplomacy and unity.
As part of activities lined up for the celebration, participants will tour the gardens of renowned legal icon and elder statesman, Afe Babalola, in Okemesi-Ekiti.
The organisers further disclosed that a Legacy Awards and Hall of Fame Investiture ceremony would hold in Ilesa to honour individuals who have contributed immensely to the promotion of Yoruba culture, leadership and community development.
A distinguished personality lecture in honour of Aare Afe Babalola, SAN, OFR, CON, and Arole Fabunmi of Okemesi-Ekiti is also expected to headline the event, with scholars, traditional rulers, cultural enthusiasts and public intellectuals billed to discuss pathways to strengthening governance and security through indigenous values and historical lessons.
The organisers noted that all activities would commence daily by 11am, adding that the festival would serve as a rallying point for lovers of Yoruba culture, history and tourism across Nigeria and beyond.
They described the fiesta as not only a celebration of the heroic exploits of Ogedengbe Agbogungboro, but also a strategic platform to inspire a new generation of leaders through the ideals of courage, unity, patriotism and visionary leadership.
The Federal Government on Tuesday ruled out any plan to reinstate fuel subsidy despite worsening economic hardship and mounting public pressure.
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, stated this in Paris, France, during a meeting with global investors alongside President Bola Tinubu.
Oyedele said the government would also not introduce price controls, stressing that market forces remain the preferred mechanism for determining petrol prices.
“We will not bring back fuel subsidy because it creates distortions for the economy, and we won’t introduce price control because we believe in the market,” he said.
The minister argued that the subsidy regime had long undermined economic efficiency, adding that emerging global energy shifts, including developments in Iran, present fresh investment opportunities for Nigeria.
The removal of petrol subsidy in May 2023 triggered a steep rise in inflation, worsening the country’s cost-of-living crisis.
Nigeria’s headline inflation climbed from 22.41 per cent in May 2023 to 34.19 per cent by June 2024 — its highest level in nearly two decades — driven by surging fuel, food, and transportation costs.
Food inflation further accelerated, exceeding 39 per cent by October 2024, while transport fares soared by nearly 300 per cent, compounded by currency devaluation.
Despite the economic strain, Tinubu defended the policy, saying it had stabilised the foreign exchange market.
“Subsidy that was a burden to the entire country was removed, and ever since we have achieved FX stability,” the President said, according to his Special Assistant on Social Media, Dada Olusegun.
In a related statement, the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said the administration’s reforms were aimed at eliminating structural distortions, strengthening macroeconomic stability, and laying the foundation for inclusive growth.
He added that the government remained committed to fiscal discipline and transparency.
Highlighting economic progress, Oyedele disclosed that Nigeria recorded an 11.2 per cent growth in Gross Domestic Product in dollar terms in 2025, describing it as a major step towards the country’s ambition of building a $1tn economy by 2030.
He also pledged that the government would begin publishing quarterly financial reports to enhance accountability and public trust.
Also speaking, the Director-General of the Debt Management Office, Patience Oniha, assured investors of Nigeria’s commitment to prudent borrowing and sustainable debt management.
The Federal Government has continued to defend its reform agenda despite growing public discontent, insisting that the long-term gains will outweigh the current economic pains.
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