Asia rapidly ageing: ADB
Asian countries should make a head start in reforming policies and
creating new structures and institutions to address challenges of ageing
as Asia is poised to become the oldest region in the world in the next
few decades.
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Lanka’s
ageing population
**Sri Lanka has the fastest
ageing population in South Asia.
**Country might face a
severe social challenge if the policy makers did not pay
heed to the matter immediately.
**The country could face a
massive social challenge while providing income, health and
various other support schemes to the elderly population.
**The income would stand at
a much lower level and thus, the nation could face a massive
social challenge for providing various schemes aimed at the
elderly population.
Investment in healthy and
productive ageing remained essential in a scenario where the
speed of population aging was tremendous.
A World Bank report |
This is stated in an ADB working paper on Regional Economic
Integration released this month. the paper titled ‘Ageing in Asia’:
Trends, Impacts and Responses noted that although during the period 1950
to 1975 the number of elderly persons in the world increased by nearly
70 per cent from 57.6 million to 97.7 million their share in Asia’s
total population was only 4.1 per cent. Asia was a young region then.
The old age depending ratio in 1975 was a mere 6.8. By 2005 however
Asia’s demographic landscape changed completely.
The share of the elderly median age and old age dependency ratio was
on the rise while the youngest base in the population had stopped
expending. By 2050 Asia will have some 922.7 million elderly comprising
17.5 per cent of the population. Modern Age will rise to 40.2 years and
the old age dependency ratio will increase to 38.8.
The paper states that a rapidly ageing population could have adverse
effects on economic performances and prospects through a decrease in the
labour force, lower saving and investment rates and spiralling pension
and health care costs. Japan, the Peoples Republic of China and the
newly industrialised economies such as Hong Kong, Republic of Korea and
Singapore are already grappling with, some if not all these problems.
However developing countries in Asia still have a bit of time on
their side and they would do well to use that time wisely to reforming
policies and creating new structures and institution to address the
challenges of ageing.
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