Foreigners to Account for 10% of Population in 2050
By Jane Han
Staff Reporter
Kindergartens closing over a shortage of young students, provincial districts fighting for water and robots taking over countless numbers of jobs ― this is a snapshot of South Korea in 2050. Or at least how a state-run agency painted the country's future in 41 years.
The Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements (KRIHS) highlighted Thursday some of the nation's expected highs and lows in its latest report "Grand Vision 2050," aimed at helping the government plan ahead to accommodate upcoming socioeconomic changes.
The study singled out worsening water shortages and the fast-declining population as the biggest foreseeable problems needing immediate attention.
It explained that 20 percent of countries around the world are going to be struggling with a lack of water by 2050, and that South Korea ― although currently sufficiently supplied ― will be no exception.
Provincial districts will be tangled up in conflicts over building dams and securing supplies, the agency forecast.
The ageing population will also become a bigger problem.
The KRIHS predicted that 38.2 percent of the country's population will be aged 65 years and older by 2050 if the current low birth rate continues.
The total population of South and North Korea is expected to total 67 million, declining 6 million from the current figure, with the median age jumping to 56.7 years.
On the positive side of the demographic changes the report highlighted is the expected increase of the foreign population.
It forecast that expatriates would take up 9.8 percent of South Korea's population by 2050, stripping the country of its "racially homogenous" status.
The KRIHS said the Northeast Asian country will see a racial mix similar to that of today's London, laying the ground for Seoul to become more of a regional hub welcoming an international crowd.
On the economic front, the nation's per capita gross national product (GNP) is expected to reach $80,000, cementing its status as a regional economic powerhouse.
The report said improved financial conditions will encourage and help average South Koreans to enjoy a whole new level of cultural activities compared to today, opening a new phase of cultural renaissance.
More people will flock to the city, it added, as financial and cultural activities will become increasingly centered on the nation's capital.