Seoul, Dec 24 (EFE).- One fifth of South Korea’s population is now over 65 years old, officially making it a “super-aged” society, the country’s interior ministry said on Tuesday.
South Korea is facing a demographic crisis caused by low birth rates and a rapidly aging population and has 10.24 million inhabitants over 65 years old, 20 percent of its total population of 51.22 million.
This makes the Asian country, which has the lowest birth rate in the developed world, a super-aged society, according to the parameters of the United Nations (UN)
The UN classifies countries where more than 7 percent of the population is 65 years old or older as an aging society, those with more than 14 percent as an aged society, and those with more than 20 percent are considered to be a super-aged society.
Of the total 10.24 million South Koreans aged 65 and above, 5.69 million are women and 4.54 million are men, according to the ministry.
The number of inhabitants who are part of this age group has doubled since 2008, when they represented 10 percent of the population.
The South Korean region with the highest percentage of people over 65 is the predominantly agricultural and fishing province of South Jeolla, with 27.18 percent.
On the other hand, the region with the lowest percentage is Sejong, an autonomous city that in 2012 became the new headquarters of several government ministries and agencies and where only 11.57 percent of people are over 65.
In June, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol declared that the country was in a “demographic national emergency” and promised to launch a comprehensive program to encourage births.
Yoon also announced a plan to create a Ministry of Population to develop strategies pertaining to South Korea’s population problem, including the low birth rates, aging society and immigration policies. EFE
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