SOUTH KOREA GRAPPLES WITH RECORD-HIGH POVERTY AMONG ELDERLY IN OECD

Mon 29 September 2025:

South Korea has logged the highest relative poverty rate among its retired population among member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), data showed Monday.

The relative poverty rate stood at 39.8% for those aged 65 and older in 2023, up 0.1 percentage point from the previous year, Seoul-based Yonhap News reported, citing Statistics Korea. It marked the highest level among the 33 OECD member countries.

South Korea’s senior population reached 10.51 million this year, making up 20.3% of the country’s total population.

The proportion is projected to jump to 30% by 2036 and exceed 40% by 2050. The average net assets of senior households in 2024 stood at 465.94 million won ($332,695), up 10.54 million won from the previous year. Some 57.6% among those aged 65-79 expressed a desire to continue working.

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Global Population Decline

Global fertility rates have plummeted from 5 kids per woman in 1963 to 2.3 today, below the 2.1 ‘replacement’ level needed to hold steady. Why? Urban hustle, sky-high child-rearing costs, empowered women delaying families, and education sparking smaller broods.

In high-income spots like Europe and East Asia, it’s already happening, Japan loses 0.5% yearly, China 0.2%, with emigration and aging piling on.Projections from the UN paint the cliff: We’ll peak at 10.3 billion around 2084, then slide to 10.2 billion by 2100—a gentle global dip, but brutal regionally.

China could halve to 633 million; Europe shrinks 0.3% annually by 2050. Africa’s the outlier, still growing to 26% of humanity by mid-century, but even there, fertility’s tumbling faster than expected.So, what’s next?

Median age hits 42 by 2100, with elders doubling to 24% of us. Economies strain under fewer workers funding pensions and healthcare—think Japan’s robot caregivers or Europe’s migration debates. Innovation could save us: AI, biotech, or policies like Hungary’s baby bonuses. Or it sparks progress—less crowding, greener planets, richer lives per capita.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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