Trying to Reverse Demographic Decline: Pro-Natalist and Family Policies in Russia, Poland and Hungary

During the early 2000s governments in Russia, Poland and Hungary declared demographic crises adopted pro-natalist programmes to increase fertility, as well policies support families with children. Our article compares their ‘flagship’ programmes: Russia’s Maternity Capital, Poland’s Family 500+, Hungary’s enhanced earned income tax credit, all framed by governments’ neo-familialist discourses. We confirm these had limited impacts on finding that most significant disparate effects were instead childhood poverty. Provision of preschool public childcare parental leaves levels mothers’ employment across cases compared. find no relationship between coverage institutions rates mothers young Data show a weak length compensation for maternal employment. conclude post-communist flagship incentives, family traditionalist rhetoric have reversing decline or re-traditionalising contemporary women’s lives.