According to government data a record one in four women in Japan is aged 65 or over, highlighting fears of looming shortage of workers as the population ages in the world’s number two economy.
It is said that of Japan’s female population, 16 million Japanese women have reached 65, the highest number since records began in 1950.
Men and women combined, Japan had a record 28.98 million elderly people, up by 800,000 from a year earlier.
Japan’s young people are now putting off starting a family because of the burden on their lifestyles and careers.
The new government has promised to start allowances for families with small children. Japan’s fertility rate was 1.37 children per woman in 2008, well below more than two percent needed to maintain the population of 127 million.
No comments:
Post a Comment