Seoul: South Korea is now becoming a country of the elderly. Yes, South Korea has formally turned into a ‘super-aged’ society. 20 percent of the country’s population is 65 years of age or older. According to the Interior Ministry of South Korea, South Korea is facing the demographic crisis of rapidly aging population and low birth rate.
As of Monday, the number of South Koreans aged 65 or older stood at 10.24 million, accounting for 20.0 percent of the country’s total population of 51.22 million, Yonhap news agency reported. The United Nations classifies countries as aging societies where more than 7 percent of the population is 65 years of age or older. Countries where more than 14 percent of the population is aged 65 years or more are classified as aged society.
At the same time, countries where more than 20 percent of the population is aged 65 years or more are classified as super-aged society. This age group in South Korea has gradually increased over the years. It was 4.94 million in 2008. In 2008 it was 10 percent of the population, which increased to more than 15 percent in 2019 and reached 19.05 percent in January this year.
As of Monday, the number of women in the age group was 5.69 million, while the number of men was 4.54 million. The population of this age group in South Jeolla province was 27.18 percent. This was highest in major areas of the country. In the central city of Sejong, the share of this age group was the lowest at 11.57 percent. The population of this age group in Seoul was 19.41 percent. In a release, ministry officials said, “There is an urgent need for fundamental and systematic response measures by setting up a population-centric ministry.” South Korea has unveiled plans to launch a new ministry of population strategy to address its demographic crisis.
Tag: South Korea, world News
first published : December 24, 2024, 1:27 pm IST
