Japan’s population fell 595,000 from a year earlier to total 124,352,000 as of Oct. 1 for the 13th consecutive year of decline, according to government data released Friday, as the Asian nation continues to grapple with a declining birthrate and a rapidly graying society.

The population of Japanese nationals fell 837,000 to 121,193,000, marking the largest drop since comparable data became available in 1950, according to a demographic survey by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.

Those 75 or above rose 713,000 to about 20.08 million, eclipsing the 20 million mark for the first time.

The number of people from zero to 14 years old fell 329,000 to about 14.17 million, accounting for 11.4% of the total population, the lowest ever. Those between 15 and 64 dropped 256,000 to about 73.95 million, 59.5% of the total population.

Meanwhile, the foreign national population rose 243,000 to about 3.16 million. Foreign workers and students who had been in Japan more than 90 days were counted in the overall population figure, according to the ministry.

Among the country’s 47 prefectures, only Tokyo saw a rise in population, the second straight year of increase for the Japanese capital.

In an estimate released by a national population institute the same day, single-person households were forecast to account for 44.3% of the 52.61 million households in Japan in 2050, with nearly half of them made up of people 65 or older.

In 2020, the number of single households accounted for 38% of the total.

Among the elderly living alone in 2050, 59.7% of men and 30.2% of women are projected to have never married, up from 33.7% and 11.9%, respectively, in 2020, according to the data by National Institute of Population and Social Security Research.

The projected trend suggests that the central and local governments need to enhance support for elderly people in areas such as nursing care.

Source: Nikkei Asia
-Agencies