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Live Long and Prosper: Aging in East Asia and Pacific. World Bank East Asia and Pacific Regional Report . The World Bank. World Bank Group , 2016, ISBN 978-1-4648-0469-4 , 263 pages.
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Live Long and Prosper is the authoritative fourth instalment in a series from the World Bank East Asia and Pacific Regional Reports, with the previous titles examining employment, education, and gender equality. The comprehensive report, produced and reviewed by international experts, addresses drivers and strategies on population ageing and its demographic, social, economic, labor force, health, and healthcare implications. The balanced and constructive tone marks another notable advance since the Bank's 1994 global report 'Averting the old age crisis'. The work is supported by excellent graphics, a goldmine of up-to-date data, and attention to the remarkable diversity in the region.
The report begins with the fundamental fact that East Asia led by China already has more older people than any other region in the world. The countries can be roughly described by the speed and pattern of population ageing stretching from already ageing societies such as Japan and South Korea to emerging ageing economies such as China, Malaysia, Thailand, and still relatively younger populations in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and the Philippines. The region is also at varying stages of economic development: some countries will 'become old before getting rich', hence they are facing particular challenges in their...