KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is projected to become an ‘aged nation’ by 2048, when the proportion of citizens aged 65 and above reaches 14 per cent of the total population, Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan said.
Amir Hamzah, carrying out the duties and functions of the Economy minister, said this projection is based on the latest statistics from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) as of July this year.
He said Malaysia officially became an ageing nation in 2021, when the proportion of those aged 65 and above reached seven per cent of the total population.
“Increased life expectancy and declining fertility rates mean that the number of younger people aged between 0 and 14 will continue to decrease, while the elderly population above 65 will keep rising,” he told the Dewan Rakyat during Question Time today.
He was responding to a question from Sim Tze Tzin (PH–Bayan Baru) on Malaysia’s demographic ageing trend and the government’s preparations, including projections for population, birth, death and marriage rates over the next 10 years.
Amir Hamzah said DOSM figures showed Malaysia’s population in 2025 at 34.2 million, projected to rise to 36.4 million in 2030 and 38.3 million by 2035.
“The fertility rate is expected to decline further, from 1.67 children per woman aged 15 to 49 in 2025, to 1.66 in 2030 and 1.6 in 2035. This has been below the replacement level of 2.1 since 2013,” he said.
He added that the crude marriage rate, or the number of marriages per 1,000 people, also showed a downward trend, from 6.6 marriages in 2022 to 5.7 in 2023.
This change in marriage trends is expected to shorten reproductive years and contribute to declining birth rates, he pointed out.
As such, Amir Hamzah said the government this year launched the National Ageing Blueprint (NAB) 2025-2045 as a proactive measure to prepare for aged nation status.
“The NAB outlines policies, frameworks and comprehensive action plans covering the economy, employment, education, social protection, healthcare and long-term care,” he said, adding that its focus is being translated into strategies and initiatives under the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP) to prepare the country towards becoming an aged nation.
He said the government has identified four key strategies under 13MP, namely long-term care, labour market and skills, fiscal and social protection and retirement savings.
Regarding the reluctance of young people to marry and the issue of declining fertility, Amir Hamzah stated that reversing the trend would require multidimensional approaches and collaboration among ministries and stakeholders.
“To reverse the birth trend will take significant effort... we will consider proposals from the relevant ministries. Engagements for the Budget are also ongoing, and I will look into this matter when the time comes,” he said. - Bernama
