China’s ‘Bachelor Brigade’: Government Steps In to Help Unmarried Men Find Love

Local Chinese governments are announcing plans to support “older bachelors” in their pursuit of marriage as they face declining marriage and birth rates amid gender imbalances.

According to reports from the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture in southwestern Yunnan Province recently surveyed over 33,000 unmarried men aged 35 to 55. The prefecture plans to address the marriage issues of older men through both government-arranged methods and free-choice relationships.

In response, the Dali Prefecture Civil Affairs Bureau has announced that local organizations, including the Communist Youth League and the Women’s Federation, will act as platforms for marriage services. These organizations plan to educate rural youth on marriage values and offer public interest matchmaking or free marriage services.

They will create meeting places for unmarried men by utilizing facilities like cultural centers and public parks and organize regular events based on age and interests to increase opportunities for finding partners. The Dali Federation of Trade Unions (official trade union) also announced plans to hold 13 dating events this year.

The Chinese authorities’ efforts to promote marriage for men are related to crime prevention. SCMP reported concerns that rising unmarried men could lead to social instability. In 2015, Li Shuzhuo, then a researcher in population and development studies at Xian Jiaotong University, warned in a Chinese Communist Party document that the surplus of men could lead to issues like female kidnapping or pornography addiction.

Meanwhile, China is grappling with severe gender imbalance due to decades of the one-child policy and deep-rooted preferences for sons. The 2000 census indicated that there were 117 boys for every 100 girls.

Also, marriage and birth rates are on the decline. In the first half of this year, marriage registrations in China fell to 3.23 million, marking the lowest level since 2013, with a decrease of 498,000 compared to the same period last year. The number of newborns in January reached a record low of 9.02 million. Concerns over job stability and the future amid economic slowdowns are leading more people to choose to remain single or delay marriage.