Malaysia's ageing issues.

According to United Nations estimates, the population of the elderly 60 years and over in the world will reach 1.2 billion by the year 2025, the majority of whom will be in developing countries l . A major factor in the ageing of a population is fertility decline and statistics indicate that f~rtility for Malaysian females has been declinini,3. The implementation of development and health programmes along with the general improvement in the standard of living has also brought about remarkable decline in mortality which also contributes to the ageing phenomenon. The expectation of life at birth has increased for both sexes in all the ethnic groups. There are gains also, though small, in the expectation of life at 60 years of age for all the ethnic groups except in the case of the Indian male who has not had an increase compared to the figures for 1957. The population who are aged 60 and over in Malaysia is estimated at about 1 million now, and is projected to increase to 1.5 million by the turn of the century, and 4 million by the year 2025. Using the more conventional measure of 65 years and over, the number of persons ag~d 65 and over is estimated at around one million by the year 2000, and 2.7 million by the year 20252,3. There will be 833,000 old-old (aged 75 and over) in just about 28 years from now2 • The growth pattern of the different age categories indicate that while increases in all age categories are expected, the increase is more marked at the older ages. Further, the drive towards industrialization has attracted many young people to work in industries which are located mainly in urban areas and usually away from their rural family homes. This out migration of young persons from rural areas has contributed to a breakup in the extended family structure and aggravated the ageing of the population in rural communities2 •