Live long and prosper: aging in East Asia and Pacific
East Asia and Pacific is aging faster – and on a larger scale – than any other region in history, which could lead to a steep drop in the size of its workforce and sharp increases in public spending on pensions, health care and long-term care in the coming decades, according to a new World Bank report. More than 211 million people aged 65 and older lived in East Asia and Pacific in 2010 – including 130 million in China alone – accounting for 36 percent of the global population in that age group. And the region is aging rapidly. Between 2015 and 2034, the older population will grow by about 22 percent every five years in East Asia. By 2060, one of five of the world’s oldest countries will be in East Asia, compared with just one in 25 in 2010, according to the report, Live Long and Prosper: Aging in East Asia and Pacific.