[File photo]

On Nov. 26, China’s Population and Family Planning Commission announced that the population born in 2016 will be above 17.5 million, which marks the fulfillment of the initial goals of the two-child policy.

The universal two-child policy was adopted on Oct. 29, 2015, and has been in effect since Jan. 1, 2016.

So far, the state commission hasn’t released other relevant statistics on the effects of the policy. A spokesperson for the state commission explained that, under the existing policy, giving birth to a second child doesn’t require official government approval. Instead, prospective parents have the option of registering a second birth, though registration is not required. This makes it difficult for the state commission to determine exact statistics for second child births.

Additionally, although various departments have reported relevant data to the state commission in recent months, the State Council has opted not to release the data, as authorities do not believe it reflects the actual situation of second child births.