In 2011, Hungary’s birth rate stood at just 1.23, Novák said on Thursday, causing the government to ask such questions as “what is the reason behind” the phenomenon, and “how can we help?”
Now, the administration of Prime Minister Viktor Orban has pushed a seven-point family protection action plan with incentives for marriage and children.
Women who marry before their 40th birthday will be eligible for a subsidized interest-free loan of around €31,000 from the state; one-third of the loan can be forgiven if the couple has two children, and the entire loan can be forgiven if they have three or more children. Women with four or more children will be exempted from income tax for life. Families with at least three children are eligible for a grant to purchase a car that seats seven or more people.
Housing assistance is also a key part of the platform. Families with two children will be eligible for mortgage loan reduction that could be increased if they have a third child.
Will the new financial incentives result in more children? Time will tell, but the matter is of utmost importance to the state.
“We are convinced that our future lies in strong families,” Novák told CNA.
Perhaps even more critical to strong families than financial incentives is a culture that encourages and normalizes children.
“We speak too much about money, actually,” Novák said on Wednesday. “Having children is not about money. Of course, not having children, it can be about money, but having children, it’s not your decision because of the financial incentives—it shouldn’t be.”
The state is aiming to create a culture that is more welcoming of families. It first tried to do this by enshrining certain pro-family and pro-life values in law.
Hungary was historically a Christian country since its first King Stephen, Novák said, and the state’s pro-family policies are meant to be a reflection of that in establishing a “strong identity.”
“Without a strong identity, you cannot take responsibility for others,” she told CNA.
In 2011, the Hungarian Parliament adopted its Fundamental Law that recognized the nation’s Christian roots and affirmed “inviolable” human dignity, the “right to life” of everyone and the protection of life from “the moment of conception,” marriage as the voluntary union of one man and one woman, the “family as the basis of the survival of the nation,” and the protection of persons with disabilities, Novák said.
Subscribe to our daily newsletter
At Catholic News Agency, our team is committed to reporting the truth with courage, integrity, and fidelity to our faith. We provide news about the Church and the world, as seen through the teachings of the Catholic Church. When you subscribe to the CNA UPDATE, we'll send you a daily email with links to the news you need and, occasionally, breaking news.
As part of this free service you may receive occasional offers from us at EWTN News and EWTN. We won't rent or sell your information, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
In addition, the state is now issuing public messages that “life is a gift” and that having children is a “lifelong adventure.”
“Do you really acknowledge those who are taking care of children? Do you really value that stay-at-home mom who is taking care of five, six, seven children and is not playing an active role in the labor market?” Novák asked. “Do we really value them? Do we acknowledge them? Do we protect them?”
Hungary also sees part of its Christian identity in helping Christian victims of persecution in other countries. In Iraq, the government helped resettle Christian genocide victims through its aid program Hungary Helps, providing more than $3 million for the effort.
“For that reason, we see that we have the responsibility to provide help for the brothers and sisters who suffer from persecution anywhere in the world,” Novák said. “It’s not through international aid organizations with a lot of administration and a lot of costs,” she said, but rather “is really direct help, which is addressed to the persecuted ones”
The right to life from the moment of conception is a fundamental part of this identity. While the country’s abortion rate is at its lowest-recorded level, more work must be done, Novák said. “Nothing above zero is a good number.”
The approach the state is taking to advance the pro-life cause is to “acknowledge the life of the unborn,” she said, “by providing family benefits.” By the second trimester of pregnancy, women are already eligible for family benefits.