Just like during World War II, Japan and Germany find themselves fighting a losing battle. By coincidence, these two countries now have serious crises on their hands — both have seen steep declines in their birthrates over the last 10 years. Although the governments of both countries are trying to increase the birthrate, the reasons women do not want to have children differ.

Japanese and German women are struggling to balance their careers and family life. But while bad working conditions plague Japanese mothers, German women struggle to find people or organizations willing to take care of their children while they are working.

German women have better career opportunities than Japanese women, but the country's policies for working mothers could not stop the declining birthrate. The German government, however, has a new, more progressive policy: All women can get 67 percent of their net income of the previous year (up to (¥210,000 per month) during maternity leave. This strategy aims to support well-educated, high-earning women, who often focus on their careers instead of raising families.

In Japan, however, many women are happy to quit working to become housewives, even if they are university graduates. The reason for this may perhaps be the way that "career women" are perceived in Japan. "Career women" are perceived as workaholics. Therefore, many women hesitate to focus on their careers. Also, jobs available for Japanese mothers are limited.

In fact, the number of ambitious women is slowly increasing. The problem is that workplaces in Japan are often sexist. I have heard about a Japanese woman who was transferred to another position after her first maternity leave. When she became pregnant for the second time, she was relocated again, but not just to another section, but to another subsidiary, 600 km from her current office. Unfortunately, stories like this are told all too often in Japan.

By contrast, in Germany, women are far more ambitious and treated with a lot more respect. There is a term similar to "career woman" in German — karriere frau — however, it does not imply that a person is a workaholic. In Germany, it is not impossible to have a career while enjoying a private life. Having a child is no reason to sacrifice your career in Germany. A mother's resume is still valid after children do not need to be cared for any more.

Many Japanese women between 20 and 25 years old believe their final goal is to be married and to spend the rest of their life supporting their husbands. And after 30, some women find life more difficult and worry about being single, and being called a "loser dog (makeinu)."

This does not mean there is no pressure on or criticism of single women in Germany. The Japanese belief that European women feel more liberated, and have no problem with their age and being single is a myth. They also dream of being happily married and if they are not in relationships, they often feel frustrated and will try to meet a partner.

The difference between German and Japanese women is that Germans often see a huge range of possibilities for their future, rather than just the married life that many Japanese women see. Also they are more independent. When I was living by myself in Japan, many of my friends asked me how I could sleep alone, or what I would do if something bad happened to me while I was alone. I am happy that in Germany no one asks me such silly questions.

When I came to Germany, I always got the impression that the women were strong, not only physically, but mentally. I have learned a lot from them. Thirty years ago, German women said to men, "make me happy and make me rich," but now they say, "make me happy, but don't worry about money. I can earn that by myself."

But we Japanese also share some things in common with German women. For example, Japanese and German women love criticizing men. A German woman once told me, "I have heard from a Japanese girl that many women are unhappy with their boyfriends or husbands because Japanese men are too busy, spend only a little time with them and often have affairs. Is that true?"

Before I could reply, another friend said, "Did you tell her that German men are exactly the same?"