日本专家竟建议“老人切腹自杀”……老龄化社会到底该如何应对？

2019年9月16日，日本东京，当地举行“敬老日”活动，不少老人参加锻炼。图源：视觉中国

In 2020, the number of people aged 60 years and older outnumbered children younger than 5 years. Between 2015 and 2050, the proportion of the world's population over 60 years will nearly double from 12% to 22%. Population ageing is an irreversible global trend.

Japan’s prime minister issued a dire warning about the country’s population crisis in January, saying it was a case of solving the issue “now or never”, and that it “simply cannot wait any longer”.

Italy faces a demographic double whammy, with a drastically sinking birthrate that is among the lowest in Europe. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has said Italy is “destined to disappear” unless it changes.

demographic /ˌdeməˈɡræfɪk/：人口的

whammy/ˈwæmi/：（困难或打击）同时到来；相继发生

图源：视觉中国

Piacenza’s Elderly and Children Together is an experimental project seeking to connect the vulnerable at both extremes of life.

“To care for the old is to care for all of us,” Meloni said.

“照顾老人就是照顾我们所有人，”梅洛尼说。

Care robots come in various shapes and sizes. Some are meant for physical care, including machines that can help lift older people if they’re unable to get up by themselves; assist with mobility and exercise; monitor their physical activity and detect falls.

Others can even provide companionship and therapy for lonely older people. But these robots tend to be expensive, and so far most have been marketed toward residential care facilities.

“In just 20 years, South Korea is expected to overtake Japan as the country with the largest elderly population in the world,” Lee Sang-rim, a researcher at the Korea Institute of Health and Social Affairs, told the BBC last year.

Starting this year, all South Korean families with a newborn will be eligible for a monthly stipend of about $745. The grant is provided in full for one year, and the amount will be halved when the child turns one year old.

stipend /ˈstaɪpend/：薪俸; 生活津贴

grant /ɡrɑːnt/：补助金

In the tiny southwestern town of Calzadilla, the mayor awards a live Iberian pig — more valuable than a year's supply of diapers in this ham-producing region — to every couple with a newborn.

By 2030, 1 in 6 people in the world will be aged 60 years or over. In 2050, 80% of older people will be living in low- and middle-income countries.