https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Italy in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed The number of annual births in Italy has fallen for the fifth year in the row, while policy-makers are scratching their heads as to what's putting Italians off baby-making. https://www.thelocal.it/20161129/despite-government-efforts-italys-birthrate-continues-its-sharp-decline Tue, 29 Nov 2016 11:37:11 +0100 despite-government-efforts-italys-birthrate-continues-its-sharp-decline Staff at a northern Italian zoo were astonished when two of their oldest hippos - Gonzalo and Camilla - presented them with their newborn baby. https://www.thelocal.it/20161024/italys-baby-hippo-will-be-named-by-the-public Mon, 24 Oct 2016 18:28:15 +0200 italys-baby-hippo-will-be-named-by-the-public An Italian campaign to raise awareness over fertility issues has provoked outcry, with protestors accusing the government of doing nothing to tackle the real reasons behind Italy's slowing birthrate. https://www.thelocal.it/20160923/the-real-reasons-young-italians-arent-having-kids Fri, 23 Sep 2016 17:34:35 +0200 the-real-reasons-young-italians-arent-having-kids An Italian government campaign urging young couples to "get on with it" to boost the country's flagging birthrate has been pulled after a furious backlash on social media. https://www.thelocal.it/20160902/italian-fertility-campaign-scrapped-after-furious-backlash Fri, 02 Sep 2016 14:29:40 +0200 italian-fertility-campaign-scrapped-after-furious-backlash A publicity campaign encouraging Italians to have more babies – by reminding women that the older they get, the less fertile they become – has backfired on the Italian government. https://www.thelocal.it/20160901/italy-embarrassing-baby-making-campaign-backfires Thu, 01 Sep 2016 17:42:00 +0200 italy-embarrassing-baby-making-campaign-backfires Research shows babies begin to learn language sounds before they're even born. What about babies who hear two languages from birth? Dr Naja Ferjan Ramirez investigates. https://www.thelocal.it/20160504/why-the-baby-brain-can-learn-two-languages-at-the-same-time Wed, 04 May 2016 13:23:06 +0200 why-the-baby-brain-can-learn-two-languages-at-the-same-time In the first case of its kind in Italy, and possibly Europe, a woman has given birth to two sets of identical twins. https://www.thelocal.it/20151216/woman-gives-birth-to-two-sets-of-identical-twins Wed, 16 Dec 2015 11:38:28 +0100 woman-gives-birth-to-two-sets-of-identical-twins Italy’s Interior Minister, Angelino Alfano, has proposed a package of family tax cuts in a bid to boost the country’s dismal birth rate and reward people "who make babies". https://www.thelocal.it/20150821/alfano-pitches-tax-cuts-for-italians-who-make-babies Fri, 21 Aug 2015 14:11:57 +0200 alfano-pitches-tax-cuts-for-italians-who-make-babies A man has been charged with manslaughter after nine-month old twins were killed on Monday in a crash between a tanker truck and the car they were travelling in near Pisa. https://www.thelocal.it/20150714/twin-babies-killed-in-car-crash-near-pisa Tue, 14 Jul 2015 13:14:34 +0200 twin-babies-killed-in-car-crash-near-pisa The stereotypical image of Italian parents surrounded by their large brood has well and truly been confined to history after it was revealed the population growth rate is almost at zero. But why aren’t Italians having babies? https://www.thelocal.it/20150616/why-italians-arent-having-more-babies Tue, 16 Jun 2015 15:01:27 +0200 why-italians-arent-having-more-babies Less than a year after Italy lifted its ban on egg donors, the first two babies have been born with the help of the fertility treatment. https://www.thelocal.it/20150310/first-italian-babies-born-with-egg-donor Tue, 10 Mar 2015 12:09:23 +0100 first-italian-babies-born-with-egg-donor With births in southern Italy at their lowest rate in over 150 years, The Local spoke to the head of a development organization about what needs to be done to help Italians have a family. https://www.thelocal.it/20141031/italys-south-needs-investment-not-baby-bonus Fri, 31 Oct 2014 14:34:00 +0100 italys-south-needs-investment-not-baby-bonus The birth rate in southern Italy hit a historic low last year, the lowest registered figure since 1861, figures from a new report show. https://www.thelocal.it/20141030/births-in-southern-italy-at-lowest-since-1861 Thu, 30 Oct 2014 16:22:00 +0100 births-in-southern-italy-at-lowest-since-1861 The president of Rome's Lazio region has signed a decree to pay €800 to mothers who choose to give birth at home, rather than go to hospital, Italian media reported on Sunday. https://www.thelocal.it/20140512/lazio-offers-800-reward-for-home-births Mon, 12 May 2014 14:33:00 +0200 lazio-offers-800-reward-for-home-births DNA tests will be carried out on four couples who underwent fertility treatment on the same day at a clinic in Rome following the discovery that one of the women became pregnant with the twins of another couple. https://www.thelocal.it/20140415/embryo-mix-up-couples-to-get-dna-tests Tue, 15 Apr 2014 12:29:00 +0200 embryo-mix-up-couples-to-get-dna-tests