According to ministry data released on Sunday, one in ten Japanese citizens are now 80 years of age or older, and the proportion of the elderly to the general population has reached a record high.
According to the demographic data released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications a day before the nation’s Respect for the Aged Day holiday, Japan’s elderly population, which is defined as those aged 65 and over, saw its percentage in the overall population reach a historic high of 29.1 percent.
Out of 200 countries and regions globally, Japan now has the largest proportion of senior persons.
However, the number of seniors experienced its first decline since similar records were initially kept in 1950, dropping by approximately 10,000 from the previous year to 36.2 million as of Friday, according to the data.
For the first time, there are more than 20 million people who are 75 or older. 80 and older individuals increased by 270,000 from the previous year to a record 12.5 million, or more than 10% of Japan’s population.
On the other hand, the number of senior people who are employed has been growing, reaching 9.12 million in 2022, an increase of 19 years in a row.
Additionally, the employment rate for seniors has increased to 25.2%. Japan has the greatest proportion of working old among the major economies, with roughly one in every seven of those who are employed in the nation being deemed elderly.
According to the ministry, these ratios are predicted to keep rising as the nation struggles with declining birthrates and a labor deficit caused by an aging population.
