The nation will likely become an “aged” society by 2017, when senior citizens are expected to constitute 14 percent of the country’s population, Minister of the Interior Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) said yesterday.
The UN defines societies with 14 percent of their populations 65 years or older as “aged.”
At present, 2.52 million of Taiwan’s 23.18 million people, or 10.87 percent, are senior citizens, Jiang said, and he predicted that senior citizens would account for half the population by 2051, with serious consequences.
“The trend of aging accompanied by a low birthrate will have a serious impact on society and the country’s economy,” Jiang said.
Recognizing the trend, the government has focused some of its social welfare programs on helping the elderly, including measures to encourage senior citizens to take part in community activities, Jiang said.
Deputy Minister of the Department of Health Lin Tzou-yien (林奏延) said that as Taiwan’s population ages, efforts would be made to promote long-term healthcare services and integrated care to help senior citizens suffering from chronic diseases.
Lin said that 90 percent of elderly patients are diagnosed with one or more chronic diseases.
The government is also encouraging domestic medical and healthcare institutions to provide services catering to the needs of senior citizens, Lin said.
Tropical Storm Nari is not a threat to Taiwan, based on its positioning and trajectory, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Nari has strengthened from a tropical depression that was positioned south of Japan, it said. The eye of the storm is about 2,100km east of Taipei, with a north-northeast trajectory moving toward the eastern seaboard of Japan, CWA data showed. Based on its current path, the storm would not affect Taiwan, the agency said.
The Taipei Department of Health’s latest inspection of fresh fruit and vegetables sold in local markets revealed a 25 percent failure rate, with most contraventions involving excessive pesticide residues, while two durians were also found to contain heavy metal cadmium at levels exceeding safety limits. Health Food and Drug Division Director Lin Kuan-chen (林冠蓁) yesterday said the agency routinely conducts inspections of fresh produce sold at traditional markets, supermarkets, hypermarkets, retail outlets and restaurants, testing for pesticide residues and other harmful substances. In its most recent inspection, conducted in May, the department randomly collected 52 samples from various locations, with testing showing
The government should improve children’s outdoor spaces and accelerate carbon reduction programs, as the risk of heat-related injury due to high summer temperatures rises each year, Greenpeace told a news conference yesterday. Greenpeace examined summer temperatures in Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Hsinchu City, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung to determine the effects of high temperatures and climate change on children’s outdoor activities, citing data garnered by China Medical University, which defines a wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) of 29°C or higher as posing the risk of heat-related injury. According to the Central Weather Administration, WBGT, commonly referred to as the heat index, estimates
Taipei and other northern cities are to host air-raid drills from 1:30pm to 2pm tomorrow as part of urban resilience drills held alongside the Han Kuang exercises, Taiwan’s largest annual military exercises. Taipei, New Taipei City, Keelung, Taoyuan, Yilan County, Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County are to hold the annual Wanan air defense exercise tomorrow, following similar drills held in central and southern Taiwan yesterday and today respectively. The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and Maokong Gondola are to run as usual, although stations and passenger parking lots would have an “entry only, no exit” policy once air raid sirens sound, Taipei
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