Hungary pays couples to have babies: Does it work?

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  If you were offered tens of thousands of dollars in interest-free

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  loans and subsidies in exchange for having children, would you do it?

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  Hmm, attempting offer.

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  Well, that is the offer the government of Hungary has been making

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  in an effort to confront the country's chronic underpopulation.

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  After taking power 16 years ago, the country's then Prime Minister, the ultra-conservative Viktor Orban, introduced

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  a slate of aggressive policies to encourage more people to have babies, because Hungary's population was shrinking.

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  And it's not just Hungary.

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  Fertility rates have been falling around the world for years now.

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  And plenty of countries have been trying policies similar to Hungary's, but do any of them actually work?

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  Or are declining fertility rates an inescapable symptom of being a developed nation in the 21st century?

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  From the BBC, I'm Tristan Redman in London.

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  And I'm Asma Khalid in Washington, DC.

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  And today on The Global Story, why are people having fewer babies?

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  And will anything make them have more?

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  Stephanie Heggarty, so great to have you back on the show.

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  Great to be back.

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  Thanks for having me.

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  Yeah, it's a pleasure.

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  I wasn't on with you last time, so thanks.

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