Growing Old in China: The Business of Going Grey
It is not just Western societies that are going grey. Developing countries are ageing even faster than developed societies, says a United Nations study. Taking care of the elderly is becoming a global problem, says reporter Danwei Zhang.
Liu Ye, 60, is a single mother living in Shenyang, a city in northern China.
Her only daughter lives far away, working for a consultancy in Shanghai.
The distance is a worry for Ms. Liu (who does not want her real name to be used). As she gets older and nears retirement, taking care of herself will get more difficult, she says. moving to Shanghai is not an option; the city is far too expensive.
Ms. Liu has only one daughter, becuase her child was born in the 1980s under China's one-child policy.
Many in her daughter's generation have moved to cities such as Beijing or Shanghai, seeking a better life, but that is often far awar from their parents who are not getting old and need care.
China Goes Grey
In China, more than 166 million people are aged 60 or older. That is 12.5% of the country's population.
By 2030, this will have more than doubled to 360 million people, according to the Chinese Ministry of Civil Affairs.
As care needs soar, people such as Ms. Liu are pondering whether a retirement village might be the best place to find support in their old age.
Surveys suggest that almost 12 million Chinese over 60 would consider that option, according to a report by China's National Committee on Ageing.
"For the senior care industry, China is a huge potential market," says Zheng Xiaojun, chief executive of property investment firm Greenfield Capital Group.
"Especially in modern cities such as Shanghai, the one-child generation will face a big problem: How to balance looking after thei parents with developing their career," he says.
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