An aged couple walks on a road in Yantai, Shandong province, China on Oct. 29, 2022.
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BEIJING — China cannot simply depend on growing childbirths to handle its growing old inhabitants points, mentioned Du Peng, vice principal of Renmin College of China.
No matter what number of kids are born in China, the variety of people who find themselves aged 60 and above will roughly double to greater than 500 million within the yr 2050, he advised reporters throughout a chat on Wednesday.
To reduce the financial influence of such inhabitants adjustments, he mentioned policymakers can take motion in the present day: by elevating the retirement age, enhancing insurance coverage protection and growing retirees’ social participation, amongst different measures.
Du is director of the college’s Institute of Gerontology, which implies regarding the aged. He’s additionally a member of the professional committee for China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs.
China’s inhabitants progress has slowed as births drop and lifespans improve. Within the final ten years, Beijing has began to unwind strict insurance policies that for about three many years had restricted households to 1 little one every.
Excessive schooling and housing prices, particularly within the massive cities the place extra jobs are positioned, has additionally discouraged households from having kids.
Many international locations with related conditions additionally face growing old inhabitants points, wherein a shrinking youthful workforce has to help a bigger portion of the inhabitants.
Du mentioned Wednesday he pays shut consideration to how different international locations — significantly Eire and France — are addressing growing old inhabitants points. He additionally mentioned China was growing communication with South Korean and Japanese students on the subject.
It wasn’t till 2018, whereas visiting Singapore, that he mentioned he was requested for the primary time about China’s expertise in dealing with growing old inhabitants points.
The nation faces a singular state of affairs wherein a good portion of its aged dwell in rural areas as a substitute of cities, Du identified.
