Re-populating Hungary

„Hungary, like many other European countries, is facing a dilemma of promoting and protecting women’s rights on the one hand, and encouraging families to procreate by offering economic incentives on the other. Among such incentives the government has already introduced family tax preferences, established programs to advance part-time employment opportunities, expanded children's daycare and strengthened support systems for families with children.

However, the problem persists. According to the Eurostat’s forecast, Hungary’s population will decrease by 13% in the next 50 years. As one of the solutions, the government adopted a somewhat contradictory policy direction. On the one hand, Prime Minister Victor Orbán stated earlier this year that reversing demographic trends should be the answer to declining population rather than immigration. On the other hand, over the past year the government has been pursuing an increasingly aggressive campaign of granting citizenship to ethnic Hungarians in the region.

Romania, Croatia, Slovakia, Serbia, Ukraine and Austria have large Hungarian communities and, therefore, serve as the main target for the government’s attempt to simplify citizenship procedures for ethnic Hungarians. 100,000 of Hungarian passports have already been granted. Just yesterday President Schmitt delivered a speech in Cluj, Romania, encouraging thousands of Hungarians to apply for dual citizenship. While that would be possible in Romania, some countries, like Slovakia, do not allow its citizens to hold two passports.”