BEIJING - An increasing number of affluent single women in China are seeking a child, but not a husband, according to a report by the French news agency AFP.

The report says unmarried women in China are largely barred from accessing sperm banks and in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment, forcing them to seek options abroad.

"There are many women who won't get married, so they might not fulfil this fundamental biological mission," single woman Xiaogunzhu told AFP, using the name she blogs under to avoid any negative attention.

"But I felt another path had opened up," she added.

Her baby, now nine months old, is called Oscar after a character in a comic about the French revolution -- a nod to the donor's French ancestry.

The marriage rate in China has been in decline over the last five years. Last year, only 7.2 out of 1,000 people got married, according to official statistics.

Educated professional women face "discrimination" when seeking spouses, explained sociologist Sandy To, as their male partners have "difficulty accepting their higher educational or economic accomplishments."

But many feel that struggling to find or simply not wanting a partner should not preclude them from motherhood.

Xiaogunzhu believes a father isn't necessary -- her own was controlling and often angry, dimming her view of the traditional family set-up.(FA)