Japan Panel Proposes Redefining Elderly as 70 or Older

From Jiji

May 23 2024

TOKYO – Academic and other members of a Japanese government panel Thursday proposed changing the country’s age definition of elderly people from 65 or over to 70 or over, in line with an increase in healthy life expectancy.

The nongovernmental members of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy also proposed promoting reskilling for all generations.

They stressed that Japan should achieve economic growth of 1 pct after inflation, widely considered the minimum necessary to sustain its social security system, by improving working conditions for young people and boosting the labor participation of women and elderly people.

“We must realize a society with a high level of well-being in which everyone can play an active role,” Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told a meeting of the council.

He said that enhanced reskilling support will be included in the government’s annual economic and fiscal policy guidelines to be released around June so that anybody, regardless of gender or age, can keep working if they want to do so.