TECHNOLOGY IMPACT:
The report stated that Chiayi district is the oldest region in the country, while Hsinchu district and the city that hosts the country’s chip industry are the youngest region.

• Written by: Lee Wen-hsin, Lin Che-yuan and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporters, with staff writer

The country’s seven administrative regions, covering 57.2 percent of Taiwan’s counties and villages, became “super-aged societies” in June, the Ministry of Internal Affairs said in its latest report.

The region is considered super-aged if 20 percent of the population is 65 or older.

The ministry report showed that there were 4 million 391 thousand 744 people aged 65 and over in Taiwan as of June, this figure represents 18.76 percent of the total population and increased by 1 million 24 thousand 425 people compared to August 2018.

It was stated that in June, the country’s elderly dependency ratio was 27.3 senior citizens per 100 people of working age, an increase of 7.39 people compared to August 2018.

This means that for every person aged 65 and over there are approximately four working-age Taiwanese who need support; This number dropped to five last year.

Chiayi County, with 22.77 percent of the population aged 65 and over, was the oldest region, followed by Taipei with 22.51 percent, Nantou County with 21.28 percent, Yunlin County with 20.85 percent, Keelung County with 20.76 percent. followed by Pingtung County with 20.54 percent and Hualien County with 20.54 percent. According to the report, 20.2 percent.

Taipei and Keelung probably made the list because they provide better access to medical resources in cities, the ministry said.

Hsinchu County, Hsinchu City, Lienchiang County, and Taoyuan are the youngest regions with populations over 65 years of age accounting for 14.25 percent, 15.06 percent, 15.4 percent, and 15.48 percent of the local population, respectively It was stated that.

The ministry said the prevalence of young people, especially in Hsinchu county and city, home of the country’s semiconductor industry, is likely linked to high job opportunities or other geographical factors.

Last week, Taiwan People’s Party Member of Parliament Wu Chun-cheng (吳春城) introduced a bill calling on the government to adjust economic policy to account for the country’s aging population.

The bill, jointly signed by lawmakers from different parties, calls for replacing official language referring to “old age” and “senior citizens” with terms such as “longevity” and “strong generation”.

Citing National Development Council data, Wu wrote in the bill’s statement of purpose that Taiwan is expected to lose 10 million people from its population over the next fifty years and will become the world’s fastest aging society.

The country should create a basic law to address the aging crisis, as Japan did 30 years ago, he said, adding that Taiwan cannot afford inaction.

A lawmaker from the Democratic Progressive Party, speaking on condition of anonymity, said proponents of the bill should provide a clearer definition for terms like “strong generation” before accepting the changes.