With 20% of its population aged 65 and over, South Korea has become a "very old society", according to official data released Tuesday, December 24, 2024, a gloomy trend due to an extremely low fertility rate. Asia's fourth-largest economy had 0.7 births per woman at the end of last year – one of the lowest fertility rates in the world and, importantly, far below the replacement rate of 2.1 needed to maintain the current population. As a result, South Korea's population is aging and shrinking rapidly.
South Korea in the category of "three-year-old companies", like Japan, Germany and France
There are now nearly 10 million people aged 65 and over. "account for 20% of the 51.2 million census population" said the Interior Ministry in a statement on Tuesday, which places South Korea in the category of "three-year-old companies", like Japan, Germany, and France. The number of seniors has more than doubled since 2008, when there were only five million, according to the ministry. Men account for 44% of this population, according to the same data.
While the government has invested billions to encourage births, including by providing subsidies for egg freezing, these measures have not yielded the desired results. The population is expected to fall to 39 million by 2067, when the median age is expected to be 62.
According to experts, the low number of marriages and births in South Korea is linked to the high cost of education, soaring real estate prices, and the competitive spirit within South Korean society, which makes it difficult to obtain well-paid jobs. Another key factor, according to experts, is the double workday of women, who, while pursuing their careers, take on the majority of housework and childrearing duties once they return home.
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