Pope and Meloni encourage Italians to prioritize children over pets.

Pope Francis and Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni are urging Italians to have more children to combat the country's record low birth rate, which is threatening the economy and social security system. The government is backing a campaign to encourage at least 500,000 births annually by 2033, and has proposed measures such as tax cuts to increase spending power. However, numerous factors discourage women from having children, including a lack of affordable child care, low salaries, and precarious work contracts. Meloni emphasized the need to reverse the trend without resorting to surrogacy.