Demographics and Destiny
IMF Blog, March 2, 2020
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Bibliographic details
- Authors: Gita Bhatt
- Published: March 2, 2020
Overview
- Credit (photo: Dmytro Varavin/ iStock by Getty Images)
- Title: Demographics and Destiny
- Author: Gita Bhatt
- Publication date: March 2, 2020
- Context: Introduction to an issue of Finance & Development that brings together leading thinkers on population trends and their economic, fiscal, and social implications.
Major observations on demographic trends
- "When I visit my home country, India, I am always struck by how young it looks."
- India: visible aspirations of "twenty-somethings, many in search of work."
- Japan: demographic trends moving in the opposite direction—vacant homes, vanishing villages, fewer children.
- Technological responses: adoption of robot chefs and automated medical services in Japan to fill gaps created by aging populations.
- Changing size and structure of a nation’s population affect how we work, age, and live.
- In many advanced and emerging market economies, a shrinking pool of working-age people will have to support a growing number of retirees.
- In other countries—in Africa and elsewhere—there is a need to generate "a staggering number of new jobs" to absorb youth entering the labor market.
- Changing age dynamics influence how people save, spend, and invest, with consequences for marriage, retirement, and migration.
Contributions and analytical focus in the issue
- David Bloom: focuses on the main drivers of demographic transitions, including life expectancy, fertility, and migration.
- David Amaglobeli, Era Dabla-Norris, and Vitor Gaspar: examine the fiscal sustainability of health and pension financing.
- Other contributors: highlight novel approaches, the role of incentives, and tried-and-tested policy solutions.
Policy implications and recommendations emphasized
- Use technology to boost productivity.
- Raise the retirement age.
- Open up to immigration.
- Increase women and older workers’ labor force participation.
- Invest in people, both young and old.
- Encourage technological innovation and institutional reform.
Editorial conclusion
- "Demographics can shape a country’s destiny. But policy choices matter, from encouraging technological innovation and institutional reform to investing in people, both young and old. With wise policies, more of us will enjoy the long, good life."
- Signed: GITA BHATT, editor-in-chief, Finance & Development
- Call to action: Read the full issue of F&D
Source: Demographics and Destiny — Gita Bhatt, March 2, 2020