Myanmar's ageing population swells with little focus on care homes

Thirty years from now, there will be more people over the age of 65 than under 15 according to UN statistics.

Ethnic Kachin refugees gather in Jam Mai Kaung IDP camp in Myitkyina capital city of Kachin state on July 30, 2015.
TRT World and Agencies

Ethnic Kachin refugees gather in Jam Mai Kaung IDP camp in Myitkyina capital city of Kachin state on July 30, 2015.

Many countries in Asia will have ageing populations in the coming years. But Myanmar has already started to experience it.

Decades of civil war and military rule have decimated the country's health infrastructure and with it, the ability to care for the country's senior citizens.

The United Nations estimates that nearly 10 percent of the country's population is over 65. Forecasts suggest that 30 years from now, there will be more over 65's in Myanmar than under 15's.

"Sick seniors are a burden for families, so some of them abandon them. There are lots of cases like this in our house, that's why people here have nothing," said Khin Ma Ma of the Twilight House a nursing home.

TRT World's Nick Davies Jones has more details.

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