The economics of population ageing in Turkey: a country at the onset of population ageing

Sebnem Canpolat, Hacettepe University

The proportion of the elderly in Turkey will rise from 6% in 2000, to 10% in 2025. This will put considerable pressure on the social and economic services.In this study, it is planned to project current household and family compositions to find out future size and characteristic of elderly population by using 2003 TDHS data. By this projection, I'll determine future situation of elderly persons and can see future household and family composition in which elderly live. Also following questions will be answered : “Will the institutional care of old age population be possible in Turkey? Or will the families continue to take on the responsibility of caring for the elderly in the future?”. The headship rate projection method is used. There is a transition from the complex and large families to simple and small size families. Today solitaries are mostly composed of elders; they may become more prevalent in future.