The elderly population of Korea is exploding. A recent report from the U.S. Census Bureau highlights the soaring rise in the percentage of senior citizens around the world, particularly in Asia, Europe and Latin America.
The report underlines that Korea's population is aging at a faster pace than those of China, Thailand and Japan. The estimate for Korea is worrisome for a country where the aging population has already emerged as one of its most vexing social problems. The report forecasts that in 2050, Korea will have the second highest percentage of senior population in the world after Japan. In that year, 35.9 percent of Korea's population will be over the age of 65, following Japan's 40.1 percent.
This has some serious implications for policymakers in relevant areas, particularly labor, healthcare and pensions.
Already, the elderly in this country have a tough time managing their post-retirement livelihoods. A recent report by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs clearly demonstrates the frightening plight of Korean senior citizens. The report says that the poverty rate among people over 65 in Korea is the highest among OECD countries. Due to the lack of jobs and inadequate pensions, many of the elderly are barely getting by.
There has been a lot of media attention on issues that affect young people, such as youth unemployment, but the difficulties experienced by the elderly have not received due attention from the media or from policymakers. This needs to change because the hardship and despair of Korea's over-65 population is more severe than those of their peers in other advanced countries such as Japan and those in Europe where the elderly have more welfare and pension benefits. The average pension received by those aged 55 to 79 in Korea stood at a mere 490,000 won ($411.8) a month, which is way below the estimate for monthly living expenses. Raising the quality of senior citizens' lives is a national issue that should not be sidelined by other priorities.
The elderly population in Korea hit a record high last year, with the number of senior citizens aged 65 and over reaching 6.62 million. By OECD standards, Korea will become a "super-aged" society not long from now, with 21 percent of the population and higher being made up of older people. Policymakers should make note of the undeniable reality that Korea does not have much time to prepare for the super-aged society. The most urgent action the government must undertake is to support the economic stability of seniors by creating more jobs and improving the pension system.
Korea also needs to deal with the root cause of the aging population. The U.S. Census Bureau cited the rapid birthrate decline as the primary reason for Korea's steep rise in its elderly population. There is something to be learned from countries like Italy and Spain that are no longer experiencing population decline because they have seen an increase in the birthrate and also allow immigration of young talented people.
The report underlines that Korea's population is aging at a faster pace than those of China, Thailand and Japan. The estimate for Korea is worrisome for a country where the aging population has already emerged as one of its most vexing social problems. The report forecasts that in 2050, Korea will have the second highest percentage of senior population in the world after Japan. In that year, 35.9 percent of Korea's population will be over the age of 65, following Japan's 40.1 percent.
This has some serious implications for policymakers in relevant areas, particularly labor, healthcare and pensions.
Already, the elderly in this country have a tough time managing their post-retirement livelihoods. A recent report by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs clearly demonstrates the frightening plight of Korean senior citizens. The report says that the poverty rate among people over 65 in Korea is the highest among OECD countries. Due to the lack of jobs and inadequate pensions, many of the elderly are barely getting by.
There has been a lot of media attention on issues that affect young people, such as youth unemployment, but the difficulties experienced by the elderly have not received due attention from the media or from policymakers. This needs to change because the hardship and despair of Korea's over-65 population is more severe than those of their peers in other advanced countries such as Japan and those in Europe where the elderly have more welfare and pension benefits. The average pension received by those aged 55 to 79 in Korea stood at a mere 490,000 won ($411.8) a month, which is way below the estimate for monthly living expenses. Raising the quality of senior citizens' lives is a national issue that should not be sidelined by other priorities.
The elderly population in Korea hit a record high last year, with the number of senior citizens aged 65 and over reaching 6.62 million. By OECD standards, Korea will become a "super-aged" society not long from now, with 21 percent of the population and higher being made up of older people. Policymakers should make note of the undeniable reality that Korea does not have much time to prepare for the super-aged society. The most urgent action the government must undertake is to support the economic stability of seniors by creating more jobs and improving the pension system.
Korea also needs to deal with the root cause of the aging population. The U.S. Census Bureau cited the rapid birthrate decline as the primary reason for Korea's steep rise in its elderly population. There is something to be learned from countries like Italy and Spain that are no longer experiencing population decline because they have seen an increase in the birthrate and also allow immigration of young talented people.
