Where the Aging Population Problem is Greatest

Some parts of the world are facing an ever-escalating aging population crisis. As this infographic using Population Reference Bureau data shows, no world region is currently worse affected than Europe. There, with falling birth rates and rising life expectancies (pandemic-hit years aside), the share of the population over the age of 65 is now higher than that for the under 15s.

North America has a similar demographic split, with the youngest in the region only just outnumbering the oldest at 18 percent and 17 percent, respectively. Globally, an estimated one quarter of the population are under the age of 15, compared to 10 percent that are over 65. As our chart illustrates, Africa has by far the largest size difference between the youngest and oldest demographics. Worth noting here though is that the average life expectancy in Africa according to the UN, while growing, is just 56. Analysis here then needs to be framed differently to Europe, for example, where life expectancy is 77.