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Problems ahead: Hungary’s population does not stop aging
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The age distribution of the Hungarian population is getting worse. Hungary’s demographic situation has been for decades characterised by population decline and ageing, Portfolio.hu reports. Data from the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) reveals that while in 1990, there were 65 people above the age of 64 for 100 children (age 0-14), now, there are 128 older people for 100 children.
In recent years, the number of people under 14 years of age has significantly decreased. The number of people between 15 and 64 years of age has dropped slightly since 2001. In opposition, the number of people above 65 years of age has continuously increased since 1990. Hungary had a population of 9,804,000 people when the data was collected.
In Hungary, there has been a natural population decline since 1981, meaning that there are more deaths and fewer births.
Consequently, the number of younger people within the labour force is decreasing, thus the economically active population composition shifts towards the older age groups. Both the increase in the retirement age and increasing the years of compulsory education have influenced the processes, mentioned earlier, in population growth.
In 1990, the economically active population consisted of 2.7 million people. In subsequent years, their number dropped significantly, but in 2011, the number was above 4 million again (4.5 million people).
The issue is wide spread among the west and democratic countries. Most countries try the easy fix by increasing immigration numbers. In my opinion, the solution is in house and government must do more to support families and reward families for having 3 or more children.