New Taipei senior population tops 800,000

新北市高齡人口超過80萬

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) said Monday that the city now has more than 800,000 seniors and has entered a super-aged society.

CNA reported Monday that seniors now account for about 20% of the city’s 4.04 million residents. Hou said the city aims to raise the number of day care centers to 130 next year.

Hou noted that New Taipei has hit its goal of opening 120 day care centers for seniors. He added that the city also runs more than 600 community care stations and over 1,400 senior clubs.

So far, seven cities and counties in Taiwan can be considered super-aged, per Economic Daily News. In these areas, seniors make up more than 20% of the population, meaning one in five residents is over 65.

The Interior Ministry said Chiayi County leads the group with 22.8%, followed by Taipei at 22.5%. The ministry added that Nantou, Yunlin, Keelung, Pingtung and Hualien have also met the super-aged threshold.

Officials explained that many of these places have rural living patterns, so senior residents tend to stay and age in place. They also said Taipei and nearby Keelung see higher shares of seniors because of dense medical resources and easy access to care.