Impact of Population Aging

According to Akiko Kashiwagi in her article, “Gray Matters: In Japan, where one fifth of the population is now over 65, a preview of a global future,” the problem of Japan’s population is aging, and it will bring a big problem. First, the population of Japan keeps aging; by 2023 there will be about 30 percent of population over 65. By 2055 it will increase to 40 percent. Japan’s average life is also increasing; now for Japanese women it is 85.5, according to WTO, and by 2030 it will be 88.5. Second, the population aging problem is not just happening in Japan, it’s also happened in other countries, such as Italy and Germany. Many developed countries are facing the same problem. Senior population will bring government a financial stress. Third, government and private businesses are providing some welfare to senior people. That’s a good thing because for senior people, they get more benefits, and you don’t worry about your retirement, but we still worry about the structure of population of Japan. Although, this is a good thing, in the future, if the population is still aging and not increasing, it will turn to a bad thing.

People are always immersed in their situation now, but don’t think about the future. Japan’s young generation don’t want have babies, and let Japan’s population keep decreasing and aging. This is not only one’s problem, it’s everyone’s problem. I think Japan must do some powerful things to change this situation, or Japan will be a poor country in the future because of the older population. The main point is how to increase population to change the aging status. Increasing birth rates, opening immigration, and teaching people to know this problem are the ways I think might affect this problem.

First, how to increase the birth rates? According to Evans (2007), “The population peaked at 128 million in 2005 and is expected to fall below 100 million by the middle of the century, when 36% will be 65 or older” (para. 2). The population is now decreasing and aging. The government has the biggest responsibility for this problem. They should think of ways to help people have babies, for example, welfare of newborn babies, or nurse care. Encourage people to produce babies. Some problem comes from women, because they don’t want to have babies. I think Japan’s culture is the biggest fact. In Japan, men’s power has always been bigger than women’s. This idea must change, or women will come to reject having babies. This is a serious problem; every Japanese should think about this point in a serious way and start producing babies now.

Second, the way to increase population is opening Japan up to immigration. If they open immigration, other countries’ people can move to Japan. They come from other cultures, and they might not be influenced by Japan’s culture. So they can produce more babies. They can help Japan increase their population. Japan’s immigration policy is very strict now. They should start to revise the policy immediately. They should open more chance to let people in, and also open more chance to let themselves become stronger.

Third, government should teach people about this problem. I think most people don’t care about the population, and they don’t know the population will bring a big problem. This problem will influence everyone who lives in Japan. So everyone has responsibility to care about the country. Government has the resources and can help people to understand this problem. When more people understand this problem, more people will care about this problem. This is not only government’s problem, it’s the country’s problem; everyone needs to help to solve this problem together.

In conclusion, Japan faces a big population problem undoubtedly. And it is a demonstration. Japan is the first one to show this problem, and other countries will face the same problem in the future. So not only does Japan need to worry about this problem, but also all people who live in the world need to think about it. Japan’s example gives us warning about population. Population problem will have a chain-reaction effect on other things, like the economy. Some bad thing will happen in the future. So we need do this solution now, increase people, adjust the age structure, teach people to face this problem, and try to prevent this big disaster from coming.

References

Evans-Prichard, A. (2007, June 1). Japan leads world in demographic decline: Birth rates have plunged, affecting every aspect of the economy. Daily Telegraph, London. Retrieved July 7, 2007, from LexisNexis.

Kashiwagi, A. (2007, Feb 19). Gray Matters: In Japan, where one fifth of the population is now over 65, a preview of a global future. Newsweek. Retrieved July 15, 2007, from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17227771/site/newsweek/page/0/


EAP2 Section C – WW
Summary Response #2
16/07/2007
Henry