Increasing
Pressure from an Aging Society
More than one thousand elderly people
practicing Taiji in Fujian. |
China is now an aging society. There
are some 10 million people above the age of 70 across the nation,
most of whom are supported by their children. In a survey of
China's urban areas by the China Sci & Tech Center for Senior
Citizens, 98 percent of the elderly interviewed were found to
live alone, and less than 2 percent to be cared for by welfare
institutions. The current situation is, therefore, far from
satisfactory. The welfare infrastructure for the aged is lamentably
inadequate, and the capacity of the entire social welfare institution
covers only 1 percent of China's aging population.
