TOKYO, Sept 3 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) — ASEAN is facing rapid population ageing. It is estimated that all ASEAN countries will become ageing society (more than 7% of the population is 65 years old or older) in 20 years. Singapore and Thailand have already reached the aging society and others including Viet Nam and Brunei Darussalam are following this trend. In 2030, more than 70 million people in ASEAN are projected to be older than 65 years old.
While the population ageing poses number of critical social issues in ASEAN such as ensuring the social integration and economic security of the elderly as well as having vibrant social security system, it also brings business opportunities with increasing demands for new services to support the active ageing of elderly population in the region. Regional initiatives include the Japan-ASEAN Health Initiative which supports human resources development towards the promotion of healthy lifestyles, preventing diseases and raising healthcare standards in ASEAN, and the Japan-ASEAN Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Initiative with focus on population ageing, which among others supports the conduct of Japan-ASEAN joint research, and explore future collaborative forums or mechanism towards sustainable UHC and addressing healthy and active ageing.