Ecuador Population
Aging, A Challenge
QUITO - A forecast on demographic changes in
Ecuador for 2025 indicates that the
population over 65-year-old will increase,
thus obliging the government to draw up a
plan in order to confront the challenges.
In fact, the development strategy for
2009-2013 envisioned in the National Plan
for Good Living confirmed that "future
population dynamics will affect the public
policies in many areas".
Those programs cover from social security
system sustainability to basic, middle and
high education funding in order to meet
population's needs towards 2025, when
Ecuador is predicted to have 17.1 million
people.
Despite the pace of the demographic growth
will slow down at an average of 1.1 percent
a year after 2020, the 3.3 million people
rise is a considerable increase with regard
to current Ecuadorean population.
Fertility will also increase to 2.1 children
per woman, that is close to the replacement
rate, therefore a larger population is
expected although its growth tends to slow
down.
Life expectancy will rise about 2 years,
reaching 77,5 years for both genders, and
infant mortality rate will drop from 20 to
11 per 1,000 life births in the next 17
years, simultaneously. As a consequence,
balance between various age groups will be
affected significantly, and relative
importance of young population under 15 will
fall from 31.2 to 24.5 percent.
On the other hand, the population between 15
and 64 will rise from 63 to 66 percent, and
over 65 will rise from 6 to 9.3 percent.
As a result of those changes in the
demographic pyramid, the working age
population will also augment, that is why it
is indispensable to generate new adequate
jobs and shape, educate and prepare those
people.
In the mean time, elderly people will also
require specialized services on health,
social security, architectural accessibility
and the creation of new activities so they
can use their creative potential.
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