Global Scans · Seniors · Weekly Summary

WHAT'S NEXT?: Between 2000 and 2050, the proportion of the world's population aged over 60 will double from about 11 per cent to 22 per cent.

• [New] Taiwan will have taken only 25 years to transition from an ageing society to an aged society and only 7 years to transform from an aged society to a superaged society. PubMed Central (PMC)
• [New] Taiwan will complete the shift from an ageing to a super-aged society within a markedly compressed timeframe, leaving limited opportunity for health systems to adapt incrementally. PubMed Central (PMC)
• [New] Taiwan's total population is projected to decline substantially while population ageing accelerates, reshaping both the size and age structure of the potential donor pool. PubMed Central (PMC)
• [New] Projections for 2060 suggest an inverted pyramid shape, with a high concentration of older age groups and a sharp reduction in younger cohorts, indicating both advanced population ageing and overall population decline. PubMed Central (PMC)
• [New] With an ageing population and increasing burden of multimorbidity, dementia and cancer, the need for palliative care is projected to rise by 25% even by 2040 (an estimated 160,000/year more people needing palliative care in England and Wales alone). PubMed Central (PMC)
• [New] The old-age dependency ratio is projected to rise from 25.8 in 2023 to 62.6 by 2042, meaning each elderly person will be supported by 1.6 working-age individuals, compared to four in 2023. / South Korea PubMed Central (PMC)
• [New] The old-age dependency ratio is expected to surge from 25.8 in 2023 to 77.3 by 2050, meaning that by 2050, each elderly person will be supported by just 1.3 working-age individuals, compared to four in 2023. PubMed Central (PMC)
• [New] Ageing-related spending pressures are increasing, with social security and Medicare trust funds projected to be depleted within a decade. MarketForces Africa
• [New] The effects of UV exposure build over time - driving premature ageing and increasing the risk of skin cancer, which is now the most common form of cancer in the United States. Morningstar, Inc.
• [New] Up to half of the UK population lives with chronic pain, a figure projected to rise with ageing populations and increasing rates of musculoskeletal conditions like arthritis. Chemistry World
• [New] A new generation of self-healing tools could make the U.S.'s ageing power grid far more resilient against modern threats. Big Think
• [New] The longevity industry is expected to grow to $8 trillion by 2030. Business Insider
• [New] The global agricultural workforce is expected to decline by 28% by 2030, due to factors such as urbanization and ageing populations. Qubit Page
• [New] The Inflation-Indexed SFL would increase payable benefits for the bottom 90% of retirees in 2035 and for 80% of retirees by 2060. Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget
• Australia's population is rapidly ageing, and estimates show Australia will need an additional 10,000 aged care beds per year to meet demand. Australian Ageing Agenda
• China and the North Atlantic are projected to have old age dependency ratios over 50%, followed by 45% and 39% in Central and Eastern Europe and the United States, respectively. PubMed Central (PMC)
• Globally, the old-age dependency ratio is projected to increase from 14% in 2019 to 20% in 2035 and to 26% by 2050. PubMed Central (PMC)
• Heat-related mortality among the elderly was projected to rise by more than 250% in the 2080s under RCP8.5 and a medium population growth scenario in China, and the global meningitis incidence was projected to increase by more than 180% in severe climate change scenarios by 2100. PubMed Central (PMC)
• By 2050, about 52 elderly people for every 100 workers in OECD countries will have a pension pressure. Greytt
• The changes associated with immune system ageing observed in men are globally less extensive, but an increase in certain blood cells presenting pre-leukemia alterations was observed, a fact that could explain why some blood cancers are more frequent in older men. Fight Aging!
• The workforce in Bathurst, New Brunswick is expected to massively drop in the next decade to an ageing and retiring population. CTVNews
• The increased spending will take Australia's defence budget to 3% of GDP by 2033 under the NATO methodology that includes adjacent spending such as military pensions. CGTN
• In China, where a decades-long policy limiting families to only one child produced one of the lowest fertility rates in the world, the IMF foresees that ageing will slow annual GDP growth by nearly two percentage points between 2024 and 2050, and boost pension spending by nearly 10% of GDP. The Guardian

Last updated: 13 May 2026