Eun Ki-soo, a sociology professor at the school of international studies at Seoul National University, said society would go bankrupt within 20 to 30 years unless the population problem was addressed.
"South Korea is rapidly aging but it is not ready for the challenges," Eun said. "We must finds ways for senior citizens to contribute to society."
The social costs of caring for the elderly used to be low in Asia because families traditionally took care for their aged parents, Hayase said.
"Amid falling fertility rates in the region, we are seeing an increase in the number of nuclear family households who do not live with elders," she said.
"This means the public sector will have to carry the burden and cost of elderly care. The corporate sector might be asked to pitch in to help in the form of pensions. It is not necessarily a bad idea. But that might slow down corporate activities," she said.
In less developed economies, the elderly will have to spend their savings as they would have no other way to survive.
"Lower national savings and an aging workforce, in combination, will weaken the economic strength of the region," said Keiichiro Oizumi, economist at the Japan Research Institute.
In the end there was no choice for governments but to try to reverse the declining population, he said.
"It is a matter of human security. It is not an option, we must do this," Oizumi said.
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