Japan has one of the oldest populations in the world, with over 28% of its people aged 65 or older. At the same time, the birth rate is low, and the population is shrinking. This creates significant challenges, like worker shortages, rising healthcare costs, and struggling small towns. To deal with these changes, Japan is using new technology, encouraging older people to keep working, and adjusting its policies. As the population continues to decline, the country must find new ways to adapt and thrive. Moreover, these effects are also relevant to international schools in Japan, as they may affect the overall student population.
Japan is facing a serious demographic challenge. The population is steadily shrinking, and the birth rate has dropped to around 1.3, far below the level needed to maintain a stable population. As a result, there are fewer young people, while the proportion of elderly citizens continues to rise. Since the 2010s, Japan’s population has steadily decreased, reaching half the rate of the 1990s. This shift is also relevant to international communities, as a smaller population means fewer students for international schools, such as St. Mary’s International School.
A significant reason for Japan’s aging population lies within the social expectations of workplace culture that are put onto society. Because of job stress, long working hours, and the high cost of living, many people in Japan delay marriage and avoid having children. Women face these challenges the most, as they have to balance a career and family life due to gender roles in society and limited child care. As a result of this, many women in Japan have fewer children than they want, or they just avoid having children completely. Additionally, the urban lifestyle in Japan makes raising children even more expensive and difficult. Therefore,
The shortage of workers is the biggest effect of Japan’s aging population. Since fewer young people and more old people, not enough young people enter the workforce. This leads to a lack of people to fill jobs that are key in society, such as healthcare, construction, and manufacturing. This is the cause of many companies struggling and relying more on machines or foreign workers. As shown in the graph to the left, the average age in the country will continue to increase, with fewer younger people to fill the economic labor force of Japan.
Furthermore, economically, Japan is facing rising costs of healthcare and pensions since there are more older people who need public support and fewer young people who are paying taxes. In addition to this, rural areas, which are areas outside of towns or cities, are being affected significantly. Many young people move to bigger cities for education and jobs, which causes the already small town to lose population. This makes the rural towns shrink in population, close schools, and abandon homes.
As Japan faces a rapidly aging population and a declining birth rate, the government has begun encouraging older citizens to remain in the workforce while investing heavily in automation and robotics to address the shrinking labor force. The UN World Population Prospects suggests that by 2050, Japan’s population may fall to around 100 million, drastically reshaping the nation’s social and economic landscape. This demographic shift holds relevance for international schools, which may experience a decreasing number of new students and must adapt to a more diverse and globally mobile student population. Nevertheless, with fewer school-age children in Japan, international schools in Japan have the potential for a bigger pool of students, attracting both internationally mobile students and students of Japanese nationality.
Ultimately, Japan’s aging population is an issue for Japanese society and the international community. The Japanese government and the international community must provide clear solutions to combat the detriments that follow an aging population.
