Discuss about the Causes and Effects of Low Fertility.
Ageing is a vital process that occurs in every living organism and brings about major physical and metabolic changes. There has been an increase in the life expectancy of humans in the twentieth century. It is being evaluated that in US, the life expectancy has increased from 45 to 75.7 from 1902 to 2004 respectively (Tejvan, 2016). This longer life expectancy is a result of better education and increased income (Saheli, 2015). Although, it is an achievement but since the birth rates are declining, there is a major challenge to deal with such huge population of older adults. This has not only increased the dependency ratio but has also increased the cost of healthcare; thereby, putting more pressure on the healthcare sectors as they have deal with the problems of larger population of older adults.
Asia, being the largest continent, has a vast ageing population which not only impose multiple challenges on the economic front but also creates major problems in providing healthcare services. There have been reports from the World Bank which suggest that approximately 36% of the population of adults over 65 in the world are residing in East Asia which is likely to rise in the future (Saheli, 2015). The two major countries of Asia, i.e. Japan and Singapore will be discussed in this essay as these two countries along with South Korea have more than 14% of their population over 65 years old (Saheli, 2015).
The main challenges that are being imposed by the increasing ageing population include increase in financial problems, increased health problems (particularly non-communicable diseases), reduced population of working adults, economic challenges, increased cost of healthcare and increased dependency ratio (H.S. Borji, 2016). These challenges, demographic changes, policies and the culture of ageing population in Japan and Singapore are further explained in detail.
The demography of the world is changing at a fast pace with the increase in the ageing population. One of the reasons which are responsible for bringing about the changes in the age and size of the population is sustained baby boom. Both the population of Japan and Singapore have been impacted by the baby boom which is referred to as the “period followed by the Second World War, particularly from 1946 to 1964, during which there was boom in the world population” (Sharmistha, 2014).
The countries in south-east and East Asia were also impacted by the baby boom including both Japan and Singapore; however, the time frames of the baby boom in both the countries differ. In case of Japan, the baby boom was short-lived, i.e. from 1947 to 1949 (Naohiro and Rikiya, 2007) while in Singapore the baby boom sustained from 1946 to 1965 (Sharmistha, 2014).
The census data obtained in 2000 suggested that in Singapore, 33.89% of the total population included people born during baby boom that would reach the age of retirement or age-aged by the year 2030 (Sharmistha, 2014). This has been one of the major reasons of increased population of older adults in Singapore. However in Japan, the increased ageing population is a result of baby boom (minor factor) and other factors as the baby boom in Japan did not occur for a very long period of time. This baby boom in Japan has definitely created a demographic bulge which is believed to put millions of the baby boomers of country to the retirement (The Associated Press and McClatchy Newspaper, 2007).
Another major cause of this boom in ageing population can be attributed to the reduction in the fertility. The two main consequences of this phenomenon is that the size of labour force gets reduced due to rapidly ageing population and it becomes very difficult to reverse the low fertility (Peter, 2008). It is being suggested by Honolulu that the Japan and Singapore are amongst the top four prosperous economies of Asia that have lowest birth rates in the world due to reduced fertility rates (2010).
In Japan, the period of reduced fertility sustained for a longer time after the baby boom due to which it can be seen that there is a large ageing population in Japan as the birth rate has reduced. Another reason for low birth rates in these countries is improved education system that inspires people to have less number of children and many women tend to delay their child birth to have better living (Honolulu, 2010).
The improved medical systems today have successfully increased the life expectancy due to which the mortality rates have reduced; thereby, increasing the population of older adults. The science and technology has led to the development of better healthcare facilities that allow better treatment which in turn has decreased the mortality. The population of Japan is aging very fast with a continual increase in its life expectancy; thus, making it the country with highest life expectancy. In particular, the mortality rate of elder people in Japan is declining (Noriko, n.d.). It is being evaluated that the proportion of the people over 65 years in Japan is likely to be increased from 23% in 2010 up to 40% in 2060 (Noriko, n.d.).
There has been a significant improvement in Singapore in terms of decreasing the mortality of adults (Ministry of Health, 2010) which is adding to the increased population of the ageing individuals in the country. This not only puts pressure on the economy of the country but also the healthcare services are being challenged as they need to make their services available for the large population of older adults and provide them with a better quality of life.
The very common chronic conditions that persist amongst the older adults include congestive heart failure, dementia, hypertension, heart disorders, cancer, high cholesterol, diabetes and arthritis (Anyssa, 2016). The healthcare systems need to be prepared to deal with these conditions on a larger frame as there is likelihood that with increased ageing population, the number of cases with such conditions would also increase. The financial demands on the healthcare systems would increase as there will be a need of managing these chronic conditions in addition to the level of disability of the patient (Anyssa, 2016).
The upsurge of ageing population has led to the need of formulating various policies and schemes in order to deal with the challenges of ageing population. The pension system of the country has also been challenged by the increasing number of older adults who are not working. In Japan, prevention-oriented long-term care (LTC) benefit was introduced in the year 2006 in long-term care insurance system with a motive to prevent the ageing population in Japan from getting dependent and to improve their condition in terms of mental and physical health (Policies for a Revitalisation of Japan, 2012). Anti-age discrimination legislation has been formulated so that the right of the older adults in accessibility of services and employment can be protected (Mala Kapur, 2011, p. 4).
In Singapore, the government has formulated several healthcare policies in order to tackle the health issues of the ageing population effectively. The main agendas of the healthcare policy in Singapore are to prevent the diseases, promote health, encourage healthy lifestyle amongst the older adults, promote responsibility level and promote the ageing population to stay active (Olivia, 2006).
In 1984, a scheme called the Medisave National Medical Saving was introduced in the country to allow the people to make savings from their earnings so that they can make use of them for medical assistance. Apart from this, MediShield is another policy that had been introduced in 1990 for helping with the medical expenses (Olivia, 2006). The government in Singapore has proposed the Land Tranport Authority (LTA) in 2000 to ensure the accessibility of the older adults (Olivia, 2006).
The ageing population is greatly impacting the society due to which there is a need to impose certain changes so that this impact can be minimised particularly on the healthcare and economic sector. The major impacts of the ageing population on the society include the increase in the dependency ratio, increased government expenses on both the pensions and healthcare systems, shortage of finding the working people, reduction in the capital investment and an increase in the services and goods associated to the older adults (Tejvan, 2016). Now there is a need of implementing several limitations so that these challenges concerning the ageing population can be resolved.
A major step that can deal with the increasing pressure on the healthcare sectors is to educate the ageing population regarding the importance of being healthy and adopt an active lifestyle. This can reduce the risk of developing chronic conditions which would eventually reduce the expenses of government on the healthcare department. There is definitely a need to increase the retirement age so that the people can work for longer period as this is important so that the working population is not declined at a fast pace and also in this way the economy of country would not face major problems.
There are multiple international studies that are being conducted to identify the population of ageing individuals so that the appropriate steps can be taken to deal with the problems associated to them. Some of the major studies include Mexican Health and Aging Study, Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe, English Longitudinal Survey of Ageing in England, Longitudinal Study of Ageing in South Korea, Chinese Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study of Ageing, Indonesian Family Life Survey, Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Thailand and Japanese Study on Aging and Retirement (James, 2012).
The culture in different countries greatly varies and so is the perception regarding the older people. In some countries the older adults are not given the appropriate care and respect which they deserve while in some countries it is completely reverse. In Japan, it is an old culture to consider the older people as wiser than young people (Mayumi et. al., 2011). This makes them to get all the privileges such as respect in the family and society as well as appropriate care. This reduces the pressure on the healthcare system as the family members of the older adults provide appropriate care to them.
There is a major difference between in the culture of Singapore and Japan particularly in terms of treatment with the older adults. It has also been suggested that there is persistence of some stereotypes towards the older adults in Singapore. This creates some major problems as the elderly would not receive appropriate care in the society; thereby, building more pressure on the healthcare sector. This is because the healthcare teams would need to provide additional facilities to the ageing population to meet their healthcare needs.
The Singapore and Japan have to deal with the ageing population in different manner as both of these countries have different cultural aspects. In case of the prior, the healthcare departments have to take extra efforts and the government needs to formulate policies that can help the older adults to live independently and meet their healthcare requirements. On the contrary, there is less pressure on the healthcare services in Japan due to the fact that there culture is more protective for the ageing population and the society has better treatment towards the older adults.
Conclusion
There has been a major demographic change in the Asian countries due to the fact that their ageing population is rising at a very fast pace. The continual improvement in healthcare facilities has led to an increase in the life expectancy and decrease in the rate of mortality. The education has allowed the women to give birth to less children as they want to give better lifestyle to their family and the continual increase in expenses can be a limiting factor in providing education and other facilities to the children.
The government have formulated several policies to deal with the challenges that have arisen due to the increase in the ageing population at both national and international level. The culture of the countries is an important aspect for formulating the policies to manage the ageing population as there is a vast difference in culture of different countries. Thus, it is vital to keep the cultural values in mind to tackle the challenges of ageing population.
References:
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Choudhary, S. R. (2015, 9 Dec). Here’s Why East Asia could be In Big Trouble. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2015/12/08/east-asia-could-be-in-trouble-due-to-aging-population-world-bank-says.html
Borji, H.S. (2016, 25 July). 4 Global Economic Issues of An Ageing Population. Retrieved from https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/011216/4-global-economic-issues-aging-population.asp
Harper, S. (2006, 1 Oct). Ageing Repositioned: Singapore in the New Global Demography. Retrieved from https://www.cscollege.gov.sg/Knowledge/Ethos/Issue%201%20Oct%202006/Pages/Ageing-Repositioned-Singapore-in-the-New-Global-Demography.aspx
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McDonald, P. (2008, March). Very Low Fertility Consequences, Causes and Policy Approaches. Retrieved from https://www.ipss.go.jp/webj-ad/WebJournal.files/Population/2008_4/02mcdonald.pdf
Honolulu. (2010, 15 Dec). Causes and Effects of Low Fertility in Asia. Retrieved from https://www.eastwestcenter.org/news-center/east-west-wire/causes-and-effects-of-low-fertility-in-asia
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