As the average longevity of the Vietnamese has risen 1.5 times faster than that of the world, Vietnam is among the countries with the fastest aging populations in the world, said the General Department of Population and Family Planning. Duong Quoc Trong, the head of the agency, made the statement at a meeting held on December 4 in Hanoi to launch the National Action Month on Population with the theme “An ageing population – Challenges in looking after the elderly.” Vietnam’s average longevity in 2011 reached 73, an increase of 33 years of age after a period of 52 years. This increase rate is on the top list with the world’s average rise being just 22 years of age after the same period, Trong said. However, the average healthy longevity of Vietnam is very low, at 64, ranking 124 out of the 193 surveyed countries. According to Vietnam’s latest population census, the country had more than 8.6 million aged 60 years old and older in 2011, representing nearly 10 percent of the population. Meanwhile, people of over 65 years old accounts for 7 percent of the population. Of these elderly people, only 30 percent have pension or government’s allowances and the same proportion are covered by health insurance. In addition, each elderly person experiences 14 years of illnesses in their life spans on average. As much as 95 percent of the elderly suffer from various illnesses, mainly chronic, such as cardiovascular, hypertension, diabetes. On average, each elderly people got 2.69 diseases. According to calculations of scientists, the cost of medical care for an elderly person is eight times higher than that for a child.What to do Speaking at the meeting, Deputy Health Minister Nguyen Viet Tien said that Vietnam’s population is getting older, while healthcare policies and programs for the elderly are unable to meet their rising demand.

Therefore, he said, it is necessary to enhance people’s awareness of population structure and quality, reduce the proportion of early marriages and expand the coverage of health insurance among the public. 

At the same time, concerned agencies should also take measures to deal with ageing population, improving health care for the elderly and increasing their income, the deputy minister said. Many experts at the meeting shared the same view that Vietnam should promote social security plans to ensure the happy life of the elderly. According to statistics, Vietnam’s population reached 90 million on November 1, 2013, making the country the 3rd largest in population in Southeast Asia and the 14th most populous country in the world.