The population of Ukraine is aging rapidly. Demographer discusses the consequences.

The number of elderly people in Ukraine continues to grow, especially due to losses at the front among people under 60 years old. On the one hand, this indicates an improvement in economic, political, and social conditions as people live longer. However, on the other hand, this leads to increased pressure on the pension system, social services, and the healthcare sector. This was stated by Oleksandr Hladun, Doctor of Economic Sciences, Deputy Director of the Institute of Demography and Social Quality of Life of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, in an interview for 'RBK-Ukraine', reports 'Glavkom'.

“The aging level has increased due to the deaths of people at the front under 60 years, as pensioners are not taken into the army. Migration also plays a significant role. The analysis of the Eurostat gender-age structure of our forced migrants showed that 94% of them are children and working-age individuals, while only 6% are people aged 65 and older,“ the expert said.

Hladun noted that Ukraine currently ranks third among countries with the highest level of aging population, but this is not a critically bad situation. Overall, the increase in life expectancy is a positive factor as it indicates progress in civilization.

“The number of long-lived people is increasing, which means an improvement in economic, political, and social conditions. However, this threatens the social services, pension fund, and medical system. Therefore, this issue can be viewed from different perspectives. However, all nations are aging, and we must accept this reality,“ emphasized the demographer.

The expert also noted that the aging of the nation creates tension in the economy as the number of working-age individuals able to contribute to the pension fund decreases. Additionally, it leads to increased pressure on the medical system as elderly people tend to get sick more often. A solution could be to increase healthy life expectancy and create jobs for older individuals.

The expert's conclusion is the need to raise the birth rate in the country to ensure future generations in the labor market and support older generations.