Question

Countries (for example: India and Japan). Find out their:

• Population size 
• Fertility rate 
• Life expectancy 
• Age distribution

How are they different? What might be the reasons behind these differences? For instance, find out how countries with ageing populations are managing this.

Answer 1

Indicator	India	Japan
Population	About 1.44 billion	About 123 million
Fertility rate	About 1.9	About 1.0
Life expectancy	About 70 years	About 84 years
Age distribution	Young population with a large working-age group	Ageing population with a shrinking working-age group

Differences and Reasons

• India has a younger and growing population, while Japan has an ageing and declining population.
• India’s relatively higher fertility is linked to differences in education, urbanisation, and social conditions.
• Japan’s low fertility is associated with urbanisation, higher education, changing lifestyles, and delayed marriage and childbearing.
• Japan has a higher life expectancy because of advanced healthcare, better living conditions, and healthier lifestyles.

How countries with ageing populations are managing: Japan is managing population ageing by providing healthcare and elderly-care services, encouraging older people to remain active and work longer, using technology and automation to deal with labour shortages, and supporting families and childcare.