The Sports Bureau (ID) presented new data relating to senior citizens at yesterday’s regular meeting of the government-appointed Senior Citizen Affairs Committee, reflecting an improvement in the overall physical fitness levels of the elderly in 2020 compared to 2015, according to a Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) statement yesterday.
During the committee’s first regular closed-door meeting for this year, the Sports Bureau presented its “Physical Fitness Assessment Report of Macau Residents 2020”, while the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) also presented data related to senior citizens in its “Macau Population Projections 2022-2041”, the statement said.
The statement also quoted the Sports Bureau as saying that the overweight rate of the elderly is decreasing and the reaction and balance abilities of the elderly are improving, while the level of participation in physical activities among the elderly has also increased significantly.
The Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) presented the data on the proportion of elderly population, dependency ratio and average life expectancy, reflecting that the ageing population in Macau will continue to increase and the DSEC officials said the bureau will further enhance the planning and improvement of services for the elderly, according to the statement.
The meeting was not open to the media.
According to the Macau Population Projections 2022-2041, the proportion of the elderly - aged 65 or above - is expected to continue to rise over the next two decades, from 12.2 percent in 2021 to 14.2 percent in 2023 and is expected to be 20.9 percent in 2041.
By international standards, a society with an elderly population higher than 14 percent is considered to be an ageing society and over 21 percent is considered to be a super-ageing society.
Senior Citizen Affairs Committee Acting President-cum-Social Affairs Bureau (IAS President Hon Wai, who also attended the meeting, was quoted by the statement as saying that the use of electronic technology and e-payment by the elderly had increased significantly over the three years during the pandemic, adding that the government would further promote the development of assistive technology for the elderly to relieve the pressure on the manpower resources of nursing homes and improve the standard of senior citizen services.
The government-appointed Senior Citizen Affairs Committee holds its first regular closed-door meeting this year at the Education and Youth Development Bureau (DSEDJ) yesterday afternoon. – Photo: IAS
