South Korea has become a ‘country of the elderly’, the tension of the government increasing year by year

South Korea is now becoming a country of the elderly. South Korea has formally turned into a ‘super-aged’ society. 20 percent of the country’s population is 65 years of age or older. According to South Korea’s Ministry of the Interior, South Korea is facing a demographic crisis of rapidly growing population and low birth rate. As of last Monday, the number of South Koreans aged 65 or older was 10.24 million, accounting for 20.0 percent of the country’s total population of 51.22 million, Yonhap News Agency reported.

The United Nations classifies countries as aging societies where more than 7 percent of the population is 65 years of age or older. Countries where more than 14 percent of the population is 65 years of age or older are classified as aging societies.

Also, countries where more than 20 percent of the population is 65 years of age or older are classified as super-aged societies. This age group in South Korea has grown steadily over the years. In 2008 it was 4.94 million. It was 10 percent of the population in 2008, which increased to over 15 percent in 2019 and reached 19.05 percent in January this year.

As of Monday, the number of women in the age group was 5.69 million, while the number of men was 4.54 million. In South Jeola province, the population of this age group was 27.18 percent. It was the highest among the major regions of the country. In the central city of Sejong, the share of this age group was the lowest at 11.57 percent. In Seoul, the population of this age group was 19.41 percent. In a release, ministry officials said, “There is an urgent need for fundamental and systematic countermeasures by establishing a population-centric ministry.” South Korea has also revealed plans to launch a new Ministry of Population Strategy to address its population crisis.