Demographic developments in Greece over the next 40 years will have significant repercussions on growth, bank deposits, the accumulation of wealth, the standard of living, and the tax and insurance systems.
Yet, these changes are often underestimated by investors, the business world, and governments, which view the demographic problem as a hot potato.
As BlackRock has noted, the aging and retirement of the work force raises the nagging question of who will foot the bill for senior citizens.
Over the next 20-30 years a significant slowdown in the rate of growth of the earth’s population has been projected, especially in the developed world.
These factors constitute long-term problems that can cause important shifts in models of consumption, deposits, and investments.
Dwindling population
A recent study conducted by the Berlin Institute for Population and Development projected that Greece’s population will dwindle from today’s 10.6 million residents to 9.9 million people by 2030, and to 8.9 million by 2050.
With a total fertility rate of 1.33 (the number of children a woman is expected to bear in a lifetime), Greece today has the lowest rate in the EU.
Greece has one of Europe’s most aged populations, as 21 percent are over the age of 65.
According to a study conducted by the Laboratory of Demographic and Social analysis, there is a constant and disproportional increase in Greece of the “overage” population, (people who are 80 years old and older)
