ABSTRACT
Rapid population ageing is becoming a common feature in Asian countries, where changes in the age distribution as well as the size and growth of their populations are having significant economic impacts. A positive economic effect is realized from the demographic transition from high to low rates of mortality and fertility, which produces a large share of the working-age group in the total population. This demographic structure produces a ‘demographic dividend’ which, when it is associated with active investments in human capital, supports economic growth. Economies in East Asia have benefited from such a dividend, and parts of South Asia are now beginning to realize it too. But there is also a negative economic impact – when the ‘population bonus’ decays following fertility declines and life expectancies rise. The share of elderly dependants in the total population rises, and the population bonus becomes a ‘population onus’ with an increasing social security burden on the economy, for taking care of the elderly.
