August 20, 2004

» Will China be the first country to get old before it gets rich?

Things could get much worse. In the coming years, the customary Chinese way of dealing with expensive medical crises - borrowing from family and friends - will become more difficult as the proportion of elderly citizens in the population rises steeply. The UN predicts that by 2040 China will have only two working-age people for every person over 60, compared with 6.4 in 2000.While ageing populations are common in the developed world, the Centre for Strategic and International Studies said in a recent report that China may be the first major country to grow old before it becomes rich.