How are political leaders all over the world addressing the question of demographic evolution?
Francis Mer: The world today is characterized by two major developments: population increase and population ageing. Today, we are at a turning point. Over the last century there has been a four-fold increase in the world population, something which has never happened before in history and which will never happen again. All the continents, except for Africa, have either finished or have gone through this demographic transition. In most of the countries –Germans are very concerned about this – the fertility rates are such that the ratio between the active and inactive population will become a major cause for concern. So, given the new demographic conditions, how can countries continue to be as productive as before? I am reminded of a conversation I had with my Chinese counterpart. He said to me: “The only real problem that we are facing in China is the consequences of Mao’s single child policy, which we continue to follow. We are aware that in the coming decades we will have an active po
