[00:03.25]Unit 24 Society Language Awareness 9
[00:09.27]Are Societies Ageing Too Fast?
[00:13.10]An ageing society is one
[00:15.03]in which the population of people
[00:16.83]over the age of 60 is increasing.
[00:19.73]The global population at present
[00:21.58]is about 6 billion with 1 person in every 10
[00:25.38]aged 60 or above.
[00:27.50]The United Nations projects that by 2050,
[00:30.88]it will be 1 in every 5.
[00:33.37]This will mean that for the first time
[00:35.36]in human history the population of older
[00:38.23]persons will be larger than the population
[00:40.42]of children!
[00:41.64]What are the causes of this population change?
[00:45.01]One reason is that dramatic health advances
[00:47.80]have added 20 years
[00:49.57]to the average life-expectancy,
[00:51.92]and another is that birthrates
[00:53.71]have dropped as people,
[00:55.69]especially women, are educated.
[00:58.43]Measures to slow population growth
[01:00.54]like China's one-child policy,
[01:02.89]have also contributed to lowered birthrates.
[01:06.13]The increase in the aged population
[01:08.77]is not just an interesting trend however;
[01:12.02]it also has severe implications
[01:14.33]for the future of global economies.
[01:17.60]People traditionally retire at 65
[01:20.61]and live on government pensions.
[01:22.99]As people grow older,
[01:24.21]a huge financial burden will be placed
[01:26.61]on the government.
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