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Focus on adapting to population aging, not reversing it, U.S. expert tells APEC forum

Published: 11 Aug. 2025, 17:06

SEO JI-EUN
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Jennifer Sciubba, president and CEO of the Washington-based nonprofit organization Population Reference Bureau, delivers a keynote speech at the APEC 2025 Korea Public-Private Dialogue held during the Third APEC Senior Officials’ Meeting and Related Meetings (SOM3) in Incheon on Monday. [YONHAP]

INCHEON — A senior U.S. expert on political demography warned at an APEC forum Monday that population aging and depopulation are "here to stay," urging Asia-Pacific policymakers to focus on adaptation rather than reversal.

Speaking at the APEC 2025 Korea Public-Private Dialogue in Incheon, Jennifer Sciubba, president and CEO of the Population Reference Bureau in Washington, said governments and businesses should prioritize restructuring economic and social systems and forging partnerships across sectors and generations to turn demographic shifts into opportunities.

The two-day dialogue, hosted by Korea's Foreign Ministry, convened policymakers, business leaders and academics from across the Asia-Pacific under the theme Responding to Demographic Changes and Cooperation on Artificial Intelligence (AI). With low birthrates, aging populations and the rapid spread of AI posing both risks and opportunities, Korea, this year's APEC chair, has made these issues its two core chair-year priorities.

Vice Foreign Minister Kim Jin-a, in her opening remarks, projected that the region’s overall population will begin to decline around 2035, citing an APEC Policy Support Unit briefing.

“It is clear, however, the government cannot address these challenges alone,” she said, stressing the need for “broad-based engagement from experts and academia to the private sector, local communities and especially the younger generations.”

Vice Foreign Minister Kim Jin-a delivers opening remarks at the APEC 2025 Korea Public-Private Dialogue, held during the Third APEC Senior Officials’ Meeting and Related Meetings (SOM3) in Incheon on Monday. [YONHAP]

She outlined Korea’s proposed “collaborative framework for demographic changes” to help economies design strategies suited to their domestic contexts while reinforcing regional cooperation.

Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok highlighted local policies aimed at reversing low birthrates, including housing for newlyweds at 1,000 won ($0.72) per day and cash support of 100 million won for families with newborns.

“While the average birthrate increase throughout Korea last year was 3.6 percent, Incheon recorded a rate of 11.6 percent, more than three times higher,” he said, noting that the city’s real economic growth rate, 4.8 percent, was also more than triple the national average at 1.4 percent.

In the first keynote, Sciubba stressed that two-thirds of the world’s population already lives in low-fertility societies, calling for three “prescriptions” to unlock opportunities in an aging world — accept the limits of policy in reversing demographics; reframe the challenge as one of institutional sustainability rather than population size; and forge partnerships across public and private sectors.

She also pointed to the potential of older workers, flexible labor markets and technology, including AI and robotics, to mitigate productivity gaps.

Australian social researcher Mark McCrindle, in the second keynote, examined the emerging Generation Alpha, the first generation born entirely in the 21st century.

Describing them as “digital integrators,” he said they have grown up in a mobile, visual and socially networked environment, bringing strong intuitive technology skills but requiring greater development in emotional intelligence and communication.

“By managing the strengths of the older generations [...] and the younger generations [...] we have that strength across the generations for greater outputs,” he said, urging organizations to combine the experience of older workers with the innovation of younger ones.

In the final keynote, Willem Adema, senior economist in the OECD’s Social Policy Division, warned that Korea’s old-age dependency ratio is projected to nearly quintuple to around 100 percent by 2060.

He presented policy options such as boosting female and elderly labor force participation, promoting immigration where politically feasible, and strengthening vocational training and workplace health.

“From an economic perspective, it makes perfect sense to make better use of those skills in the economy,” he said, noting that Korean women have among the highest education levels in the OECD.

The dialogue, held during the third Senior Officials’ Meeting and Related Meetings (SOM3), continues Tuesday with expert panels on APEC cooperation in addressing technological shifts. Korea plans to present a draft framework on these issues for adoption at the APEC Leaders’ Meeting in Gyeongju in the autumn.

BY SEO JI-EUN [[email protected]]