Economic Aspects of Population Ageing in Developed Countries

The issue of ageing is usually understood as a cultural and social problem in the developed countries. When addressed by economists, demographic questions are most frequently related to the pension reform or to the costs of healthcare. However, the effects of demographic change on productivity have to be examined, too. Will the economies be able to maintain the necessary amount of immigrants, so that the number of people in productive age does not decrease? Though the world population will keep increasing for some time, it will be happening at a much slower pace. The age structure issue will become apparent only with a minor delay in the developed economies, yet it may have a strong impact on the future migration potential. Another crucial question is the potential economic consequence of the changing proportion between the original population with its cultural and work habits and the immigrants. As can be observed and demonstrated, the issue of ageing will first become apparent in countries with a high share of industry and construction in GDP. Economies with a high share of services, on the other hand, will be less affected. The Czech Republic is a classic example of an economy based on industry and construction. Therefore, in ten or twenty years the country will face a rather insoluble problem, as the nature of its economy will clash with its demographic structure.

Keywords: GDP, ageing, migration, age structure, demographic change