Childlessness and Elderly Care in Asia: Shortcomings and Gaps in Law and Policy

In recent decades, Asia has undergone significant demographic changes. The marked improvements in life expectancy have been accompanied by rapidly declining fertility and birth rates. As populations age sharply, particularly in East Asia, elderly needs and the exigency for policy intervention grow. The state broadly addresses rising levels of childlessness and the aging crisis through two means—pronatalist policies aimed at increasing birth rates and social policies intended to strengthen family- and community-based measures for aged care. This approach to elderly care in Asia heavily relies on traditional family structures and normative familial caregiving expectations rooted in Asian cultures. Traditionally, adult children and younger relatives are expected to become caregivers for elderly parents and older household members. These traditional caregiving arrangements form the basis of elderly care policies in Asia. However, these policies fail to encompass the circumstances and needs of elderly childless individuals, a population segment that falls outside the purview of traditional and normative social structures. This chapter examines the shortcomings and gaps in law and policy addressing aged care for the elderly childless population, a rapidly growing segment across multiple Asian countries. The issues faced by childless older adults also extend to older individuals who live under modern socioeconomic conditions. As cultural values shift, family arrangements diversify, and community ties evolve, Asian governments must investigate the availability of elderly care within formal and informal social structures and ensure a dignified quality of life for the elderly by empowering institutions, private industries, community measures, and family units accordingly.