Published3 hours agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, Getty ImagesBy Kelly NgBBC News, SingaporeFor the first time ever, more than one in 10 people in Japan are now aged 80 or older.National data also shows 29.1% of the 125 million population is aged 65 or older- a record.Japan has one of the lowest birth-rates in the world and has long struggled with how to provide for its ageing population. It has the world’s oldest population, measured by the proportion of people aged 65 or up, the United Nations says. That proportion stands at 24.5% in Italy and 23.6% in Finland, which rank second and third respectively.In Japan, those aged over 65 are expected to account for 34.8% of the population by 2040, according to the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research.Who will look after Japan’s elderly?Japan was the future but it’s stuck in the pastThe country’s elderly employment rate is among the highest across major economies – workers aged 65 or more make up more than 13% of the national workforce. But this has done little to relieve the burden on the country’s social security spending.Japan has approved a record budget for the next fiscal year, in part due to rising social security costs.Efforts to boost its birth rates have also met with little success amid the growing cost of living, and notoriously long working hours.Birth rates are slowing in many countries, including Japan’s neighbours, but the problem is particularly acute in Japan.The country was estimated to have had fewer than 800,000 babies born last year – the lowest number since records began in the 19th century. In the 1970s, that figure was more than two million.Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in January that his country is on the brink of not being able to function as a society because of its declining birth rate.However authorities remain hesitant about accepting migrant workers as a solution to falling fertility. Other countries in Asia are facing similar demographic challenges.Last year, China’s population fell for the first time since 1961, while South Korea has reported the lowest fertility rate in the world.More on this storyJapan on the brink due to falling birth rate – PMPublished23 JanuaryWhy adults in Japan are getting youngerPublished13 June 2018Who will look after Japan’s elderly?Published16 March 2015

Published1 day agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, REUTERSBy Kelly NgBBC NewsBeijing has recorded its hottest June day in more than 60 years with the mercury touching 41.1C (105.9F), Chinese weather authorities say.The city is experiencing a prolonged heatwave with extreme temperatures to persist until the end of June.On Thursday, officials said it was the hottest June day since record keeping began in 1961.Several monthly heat records have been broken around China this year, prompting fears of an energy crunch.Last month, the country’s largest city Shanghai, with 25 million people living on the east coast, recorded its hottest May day in a century. More than 21 million people live in Beijing, the nation’s capital in the north. On Thursday, a weather station in the city’s north recorded a high of 41.8C.Authorities earlier issued an orange alert, the second-most severe weather warning, saying that temperatures could reach 39C in the days to Saturday.The national weather bureau also issued a heat stroke alert last week – a fortnight earlier than in previous years. Local authorities in Beijing, Tianjin, and other cities in northern and eastern China, advised people to suspend outdoor work during the hottest parts of the day and to get medical help if they show symptoms of a heat stroke.Image source, REUTERSSome have also warned people and businesses to curb their electricity usage. Last week, the National Energy Administration staged its first-ever emergency drill in China’s eastern region, simulating a power surge and outage in the face of any large-scale power outages.The situation was “relatively severe” in regards to power grid security, the agency said.In the port city of Tianjin, an increased demand for air-conditioning has pushed up the power grid’s load 23% relative to last year. Workers from the local utility department were patrolling underground tunnels daily to make sure electric cables were working properly, officials said.Rising temperatures and more frequent heatwaves are the result of global climate change. A study released last month found climate change had made heatwaves 30 times more likely in Asia. It had also raised temperatures by at least 2C in many parts of Asia during an April heatwave. The region has been described by experts as experiencing “the worse heatwave in [its] history”.Thailand, Laos, Bangladesh and India all saw record temperatures of up to 45C in April.The extreme heat caused deaths and hospitalisations in some countries, melted roads and affected other infrastructure. Heatwaves are one of the deadliest natural hazards in the world, causing thousands of related deaths each year.More on this storyClimate change worsened Asia heatwave by 2C – studyPublished18 MayFour ways climate change is affecting the weatherPublished22 MayWorld likely to warm beyond key 1.5C limit by 2027Published17 MayIs India ready to deal with deadly heatwaves?Published18 April

Published35 minutes agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, Getty ImagesBy Kelly NgBBC News, SingaporeOfficials in Chinese city Xi’an have sparked a backlash by saying they may turn to lockdowns “when necessary” to combat future flu outbreaks. Xi’an will lock down areas and shut schools if an outbreak poses a “severe threat”, according to an emergency response plan published on Wednesday.Many internet users have called the plan “excessive”, especially after criticism of China’s Covid controls.Flu cases have surged across China just as its latest Covid wave is waning.The spike in flu cases has also led to a shortage of antiviral medication at pharmacies across the country. While there is no suggestion of an imminent lockdown in Xi’an, some have expressed fears that its plan could see a return to the zero-Covid approach, which the country abruptly abandoned in December.Famous for the terracotta army, Xi’an experienced some of the country’s strictest lockdowns during the pandemic. Locals were banned from leaving their homes – even to buy food and other basic supplies – for a month in December 2021. One person wrote on Chinese social media platform Weibo that influenza outbreaks had always been common before Covid, but “life went on as per normal” when they hit.Another remarked that some local governments were “addicted to sealing and controlling”. Xi’an’s plan segments its response into four levels, according to severity of the situation. Lockdowns may be called for when community spread reaches an acute level. It is not the only Chinese city that has such emergency plans. In 2015, for instance, the Shanghai government said it may stop classes and work, as well as set restrictions on gatherings, in the event of a serious influenza pandemic. “To local residents who were traumatised by the lockdown measures not long ago, the return to the same draconian method in coping with flu outbreaks is by no means justified,” Huang Yanzhong, a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations, told the BBC. But Tang Renwu, dean of Beijing Normal University’s School of Government said China was not likely to see a comeback of stringent lockdown policies. Speaking to Singapore newspaper Lianhe Zaobao, Prof Tang said other local governments may put out similar plans in the days to come – as Chinese authorities are intent on containing the seasonal flu. “Local governments should pay attention to their wording when issuing similar documents so as not to trigger social panic,” he said.More on this storyHow many Covid cases are there in China?16 JanuaryJoy and long queues as China reopens borders8 JanuaryHow zero-Covid is spoiling Xi’s party7 October 2022Public shaming returns in China amid Covid fears29 December 2021

Published1 hour agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, Getty ImagesBy Kelly NgBBC NewsHong Kong has lifted its mask mandate, marking an end to one of the world’s longest-running Covid restrictions.The virus is under control in Hong Kong with no major signs of a rebound, the city’s leader John Lee said.Under the mandate, which began in July 2020 and lasted for 945 days, people could be fined up to HK$5,000 (£530; $640).”With the removal of the mandate, Hong Kong will return to normalcy,” Mr Lee said on Tuesday.”In this year and the coming year, we will go all out for the economy and development at full speed.”Before Wednesday, people living in Hong Kong had to wear a mask in any public area.On social media, many residents expressed elation and relief that the day of unmasking had “finally” come.Some criticised the rule’s duration and its sudden scrapping – amid wider criticism of the city’s pandemic policies for the past three years.However many locals could be seen still wearing masks on Wednesday, local media reported.Hong Kong has largely followed mainland China’s lead in efforts to tackle the virus, including attempts to eliminate it with a “zero-Covid” strategy.Other Covid curbs in Hong Kong included strict quarantine rules, limitations on the number of people gathering in public places, as well as restricting visitors in nursing homes.Most of these curbs were rolled back at the end of last year. But some remain – primary and secondary school students still need to test daily for Covid, although some reports say this measure could be lifted later this month.Many residents and business owners have said such tough rules damaged Hong Kong’s economy and international standing. The city’s gross domestic product fell by 3.5% last year.In a bid to woo foreign visitors, the Hong Kong government has announced plans to give away half a million air tickets – beginning on Wednesday.Masks are still worn in several countries in Asia. In South Korea, for instance, they are still required on public transportation, as well as in hospitals and pharmacies.The Japanese government has said it will ease mask-wearing guidelines on 13 March, recommending masks only on trains and buses during rush hour, or where public transportation is particularly congested. Masks have never been mandatory in Japan, but most people have been wearing them.More on this storyHong Kong to scrap almost all its Covid rules28 December 2022Hong Kong shortens Covid hotel quarantine8 August 2022

Published3 hours agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, Getty ImagesBy Kelly NgBBC NewsAn 11-year-old girl in Cambodia has died from the country’s first known human case of bird flu in nine years, health authorities have confirmed.The girl from the rural Prey Veng province was diagnosed with the H5N1 virus on Wednesday.She had fallen ill a week earlier with a high fever, cough and sore throat.Cambodia’s health ministry said her father had also tested positive and 11 others had been tested. On Thursday, Health Minister Mam Bunheng said it was the first known human infection of the H5N1 strain in Cambodia since 2014. The girl had been taken from her village to the children’s hospital in capital Phnom Penh – but died shortly after her diagnosis.Officials have collected samples of several dead birds from near the girl’s village. Health officials have also warned residents against touching dead or sick birds.Cambodia last recorded a bird flu case in 2014. In the decade before, it recorded 56 human cases of H5N1 infection, 37 of which were fatal.Human cases of bird flu are rare, as humans do not have the receptors in their throats, noses, and upper respiratory tracts that are susceptible to the current virus strain. People who work with infected poultry are at higher risk of being infected. WHO has recorded eight cases human H5N1 infections since 2021, including in China, India, Spain, the UK and US.A new, highly contagious strain of the virus is infecting birds around the world.The recent bird flu outbreak has been circling the globe since October 2021.The World Organisation for Animal Health told the BBC earlier this month that it had recorded almost 42 million individual cases in domestic and wild birds.Almost 15 million domestic birds, including poultry, have died from the disease, and more than 193 million more have been culled.The strain had also infected mammals, such as minks and otters. The World Health Organization said earlier this month that the virus will “need to be monitored closely” to see if it is mutating into a form which can spread among humans.More on this storyWhy is bird flu so bad this year?2 FebruaryBird flu ‘spills over’ to otters and foxes in UK2 February

Published3 days agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, ReutersBy Kelly NgBBC NewsLow immunity against Covid-19 and a growing population of frail elderly is driving a surge in coronavirus deaths in Japan which had, for a long time, upheld some of the strictest pandemic restrictions.Japan once boasted one of the lowest Covid mortality rates, but the figure has been trending upwards since the end of 2022. It hit an all-time high on 20 January this year, surpassing the UK, US and South Korea, according to Oxford University’s Our World in Data.Japan was largely closed to foreign visitors from 2020 till mid-June last year. It opened its borders cautiously – at first, travellers had to be part of a package tour, buy medical insurance, and be masked in all public places. Some schoolchildren had meals in silence for over two years as schools imposed bans on lunchtime conversations. As restrictions are eased, however, the population’s low Covid immunity may be causing infections to spike, local health experts told the BBC.Most of the latest Covid fatalities are elderly people with underlying medical conditions, experts said. This contrasts with the initial spate of deaths that were due to pneumonia and were often treated in intensive care.”It is also difficult to prevent these deaths by treatment,” says Hitoshi Oshitani, one of Japan’s leading virologists, adding that Covid was only the trigger. “Due to the emergence of immune-escaping variants and sub-variants and the waning of immunity, it is getting more difficult to prevent infections,” he says. “Immune escape” is when the human host’s immune system becomes incapable of responding against an infectious agent. New versions of the Omicron variant are known to be masters of immune evasion.Before the Omicron variant struck, Covid deaths mostly occurred in cities like Tokyo and Osaka, but there are now cases across the country, said Dr Oshitani, who was once regional adviser to the WHO on communicable disease surveillance and response. “In smaller prefectures and rural areas, the proportion of the elderly population is even higher than the national average. This changing geographic pattern may also contribute to the increasing trend of deaths,” he said.Japan is the oldest society in the world by various measures, and its share of elderly people has been increasing every year since 1950. How Japan went from vaccine hesitancy to successThe puzzle of Japan’s low virus death rateElderly people who are getting infected in nursing homes or in community clusters are not receiving prompt treatment, says epidemiologist Kenji Shibuya, a director at the Foundation for Tokyo Policy Research. Faster treatment can help, he says, but because of Japan’s classification of Covid as a Class 2 or “very dangerous” illness, only government-designated hospitals can treat the infected. And they have been overwhelmed by the surging caseload. Dr Shibuya has called for Covid to be downgraded and treated as a form of influenza, allowing all clinics and hospitals to treat patients who have the virus. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced earlier this month that the classification would be lowered, but only on 8 May. Experts, including Japan’s top coronavirus adviser Shigeru Omi, have been calling for this since last year.Image source, Getty ImagesDr Oshitani and Dr Shibuya also say that the death rate could have been inflated by under-reporting of Covid cases due to asymptomatic infections and tweaks to physicians’ reporting requirements last year. That said, Japan is one of few countries still providing daily Covid tallies. Yasuharu Tokuda, a physician at the Health and Global Policy Institute, noted that the Japanese population’s natural immunity – acquired through infection – had been low before the middle of last year.He says natural immunity is stronger than that obtained from vaccination – and so low infection rates have led to low immunity in Japan, which in turn is causing more deaths.Dr Oshitani pointed to a similar phenomenon in Australia, where the Covid death rate has been creeping up since it reopened borders early in 2022 after keeping them shut for two years. Experts are divided on the trajectory of Covid in Japan. Dr Tokuda, for instance, believes future rates of infection and death will be lower. Dr Oshitani, on the other hand, expects a bigger surge in deaths in the months ahead as affordable antiviral drugs are still not widely available. More on this storyJapan may relax travel restrictions to boost yen12 September 2022Japan to lift restrictions on foreign tourists23 September 2022