As the population ages, adaptation is the only viable path—we can hardly “cope with” the demographic shift. Vietnam has around 15 years to prepare for this new population structure and turn the adversity of “getting old before getting rich” into the opportunity of becoming “old and wealthy.” Reflections from scientific research Prof. Dr. Giang Thanh Long, senior lecturer at the School of Economics and Public Management, National Economics University, and his colleagues have just published the study “Healthy Aging in Vietnam: Results from National Representative Surveys on Older Persons.” This is the first study to develop a Healthy Ageing Index (HAI) for Vietnam, based on six groups of criteria: (i) physical health, (ii) physiological and metabolic health, (iii) general health condition, (iv) mental health, (v) participation in community activities, and (vi) family relationships. The analyzed data were drawn from the 2019 Survey on Older Persons and Social Health Insurance (OP&SHI 2019) and the 2022 Vietnam National Aging Survey (VNAS 2022). The results show that Vietnamese older adults have relatively high HAI scores, with no statistically significant difference between 2019 and 2022—suggesting that the healthy aging situation has stabilized. Moreover, the HAI score is positively associated with educational level, financial capacity, […]
Adapting to an aging population
By Hoang Hanh
