BEIJING — With the fast, steady development of the economy and improved well-being policies, China saw a decline in the annual number of registered adoptions over the past decade, according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA).

The annual number of registered adoptions nationwide in 2009 was 44,260 and slumped by almost 66 percent to 15,143 in 2018, ministry figures showed.

As the economy develops and the society stabilizes, fewer children have been abandoned, according to Wang Jinhua, director of the MCA’s social affairs department. Relevant policies to improve people’s livelihoods and strengthen social assistance also contributed to the decline, he added.

The five years from 2014 to 2018 saw a total of 97,819 registered adoptions nationwide. Of them, 87.5 percent, or 85,581 children, were adopted by Chinese citizens, according to the MCA.