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Taiwan’s Rapidly Aging Population: A Crisis in the Making?

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  • Chen, Chien-Hsun

Abstract

A rapidly aging population became a pressing demographic issue in Taiwan in the 1990s due to industrial transformation, family planning and urbanization in the 1970s and 1980s. An aging population tends to lead to less human capital and lower economic growth. The percentage of population aged 65 and above was 13.2% in 2016, while the figure is expected to jump to 16.0% by 2020 and 19.8% by 2025. Taiwan’s total population is projected to register a negative growth rate by 2025. The spike in old-age dependency ratios will deeply affect future labor markets. As the population ages, the working-age population has experienced a declining trend since 2015. Indeed, an aging population is expected to slow down economic growth and raise government spending on social welfare and health care programs, negatively impacting future fiscal sustainability. An enlarging aging population has turned out to be a politically strong force to be reckoned with during elections. Long-term care insurance products could reduce family burden and provide high quality long-term care. It supplements old-age support provided mostly by the family in accordance with Taiwanese cultural values; the family hence still plays a pivotal role in long-term care.

Suggested Citation

  • Chen, Chien-Hsun, 2023. "Taiwan’s Rapidly Aging Population: A Crisis in the Making?," MPRA Paper 116543, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:116543
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    File URL: https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/116543/1/MPRA_paper_116543.pdf
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    aging population; old-age dependency ratios; Social welfare and health care programs; long-term care;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • J11 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Demographic Trends, Macroeconomic Effects, and Forecasts
    • J14 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of the Elderly; Economics of the Handicapped; Non-Labor Market Discrimination
    • O11 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development

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