Demographic dividend: Is India ready for its economy that will age?

Abstract

The world population is seeing an inevitable shift in demographic structure from a younger to older age. This phenomenon of ageing, lately, has been associated with the developed countries of the world like Japan and Europe, without recognizing that developing nations are also experiencing a similar ageing trend. To observe the gaps in the policies (hence, the preparedness), we use the elements of Sustainable Development Goals' framework used by UN, which has four key elements – Health, Income Security, Capability and Enabling environment. We undertake a multi-sectoral approach to evaluate the preparedness of the nation in the above four elements. The sectors under focus are – Health, Education, Pension and Housing. We begin by understanding the current situation of all the states under these sectors to identify their performance under various metrics. This will lead to developing a broad analysis of the gaps present in their policy framework, following with case studies of international practices and recommendations.