Thursday, September 01, 2011

100 million elderly in China: a demographic time bomb?

Proof is multiplying that China is aging at an alarming pace. If measured by international standards, China has been an aging society since 1999, announced Li Jianguo, vice chairman of China's National People's Congress. Li's remarks, as reported by Xinhua Net, were made during the presentation of the NPC Standing Committee's law-enforcement report on the Elderly Protection Act. According to this report, in November 2010, China had 178 million people over 60 years old, of which 119 million are over 65. That accounts for, respectively, 13.26% and 8.87% of the total population, and makes China the only country on the earth with more than 100 million elderly people.

 But more worrying is how the statistics are set to unfold in the future: China's elderly demographic will surpass 200 million in just three years, and top 300 million by 2025. By 2042, more than 30% of China's total population will be over 60. More...

Don't miss:
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  3. Old age and death in China...
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  6. Kenya's elderly being accused of being "witches..."

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