The number of children waiting to enter authorized day care facilities fell to a record low of 16,772 as of April 1, down 3,123 from the previous year, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry said Friday.

Although calculation methods have changed over the years and not all statistics can be easily compared, the ministry said this year’s figure was the lowest since the ministry began to keep such records in 1994.

But problems still loom as demand for child care is expected to grow, given that day care services will become free from October for children up to the age of 2 from low-income households.

The government’s goal of matching all children with care services and bringing the number waiting for nurseries to zero by 2020 remains elusive.