Vietnam Among Fastest-Aging Countries in Asia: Health Ministry

Vietnam is among the fastest-aging countries in Asia, transitioning from an aging to an aged population within only 17-20 years, much shorter than in many other countries, the Ministry of Health said.

In a report evaluating the impact of the draft Population Law, which is currently open for public consultation, the Ministry of Health has proposed six policies to adapt to the aging population, namely (i) maintain replacement fertility levels, (ii) reduce gender imbalances at birth and restore the natural sex ratio at birth, (iii) adapt to an aging population, (iv) rationalize population distribution, (v) improve the quality of the workforce, and (vi) integrate population factors into socio-economic development plans.

According to national demographic data, Vietnam currently has about 16.1 million elderly people, accounting for over 16% of the population. Among them, approximately 2.6 million are aged 80 and above, making up 15.9% of the total elderly population, 9.05 million are women (57.8%), and 10.3 million live in rural areas (64%).

The average life expectancy is 73.6 years (71 years for men and 76.4 years for women), with the elderly typically suffering from two to three chronic illnesses, resulting in a healthy life expectancy of only 66 years.

Demographic forecasts indicate that by 2032, the aging index will exceed 100, marking the point when Vietnam's elderly population will outnumber its children. In 2023, more than seven working-age individuals supported one elderly person; this ratio is expected to drop to over three by 2036 and just over two by 2049.

Currently, over four million elderly people are working in the Vietnamese economy, but most are in vulnerable and low-income jobs, with nearly 80% being self-employed or family workers. The average salary of the elderly is nearly VND3.8 million ($158,33) per month, only 34.0% of the average market salary.