ABSTRACT
Most countries in the Asia-Pacific region are no exception to the phenomenon of global ageing of the population. However, as noted in Chapters 1 and 2, a particular point about the region is that countries have different rates of population ageing and are at various stages of economic development. The region now has the highest number of elderly people of any in the world and it is expected that with successful population control in most countries in the region, the rate of population ageing will continue to be faster than in the West. Although there are shared cultural values amongst most countries which favour the family as the centre for care, especially for its older people, the pace of industrialization, urbanization and migration mean that changes are occurring and expected in living patterns, notably in the smaller size of households and families living apart.
