For the first time in history, the number of people aged 65 and over has surpassed that of children aged 5 and under worldwide, according to a report published by the United States Census Bureau. This is due to declining fertility rates coupled with increasing global life expectancy.
The world's population of people aged 65 and over is expected to increase from 852 million in 2025 to 2.0 billion by 2060. Meanwhile, the world's population is expected to increase from 8.13 billion to 10.23 billion by 2060.
It is estimated that 71% of the world's population currently lives in countries with a fertility rate of less than 2.1 children per woman, the level needed to replace a country's population. In Malaysia last year, the fertility rate was 1.6 children per woman
The Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) last month published an estimate that Malaysia’s population will reach 34.4 million by the end of 2026, compared to 34.2 million last year. The population growth rate is only 0.5%, which is slowing due to declining fertility rates and an aging population. The median age in Malaysia has risen to 31.7 years.
Europe remains the oldest region but Asia will account for two-thirds of the global increase in seniors from 487 million to 1.24 billion. Africa remains the youngest continent but its senior population is expected to quadruple to 249 million, surpassing Europe by 2060.
