Korea expected among top 4 aging countries

By Kang Seung-woo
Staff reporter

Korea is expected to become one of the top four aging societies among G-20 countries in 2030, according to the OECD.

The Paris-based organization reported Thursday that 24.3 percent of the population will be 65 or and over then, due to a low birthrate and rapid growth of the aging population.

The number is the fourth-highest proportionally, as Japan is expected to have the oldest population among the world's top 20 economies, followed by Germany and Italy.

The neighboring country is forecast to see 31.8 percent of its people aged 65 and over and Germany and Italy are likely to soar to 27.3 and 24.3, respectively.

France, Canada, Australia and Britain, all of which are also expected to become super-aged societies in 2030, where senior citizens account for more than 20 percent of the total.

In contrast, India and South Africa were expected to remain young, as their aging populations are projected to stand at 8.8 percent and 7.5 percent, respectively.

Korea is suffering from the world's lowest birthrate although the government has promoted a variety of incentives to encourage people to have children. The birthrate is the average number of babies born during a woman's lifetime.

According to Statistics Korea, the country's birthrate was 1.15 in 2009, the lowest since 1.08 in 2005 and well below the OECD average of 1.73.

What is of concern is the pace at which Korea is becoming an aging society.

In 1970, just 1.3 percent of the population were over 65, but this jumped to 9.1 percent in 2005 ― the 10th highest.

The are worries that that the rapid rise will hurt national competitiveness.

Among the top four, the three others are advanced countries, with a well-prepared welfare system through long-term industrialization, but fast-rising Korea is not mature enough to deal with a super-aged society.

"There is a growing concern that Korea will be a super-aged society and have to develop various systems for creating jobs for senior citizens as well as promoting childbirth," said an official of the Strategy and Finance Ministry.
ksw@koreatimes.co.kr