Overview
- The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry reported on Sept. 15 that Japan had 107,677 people aged 100 or older, an increase of 7,914 from a year earlier.
- Women account for 87.6 percent of the centenarian population, with 94,298 people, reflecting Japan's higher female life expectancy.
- The ministry’s register shows another 54,294 people will reach 100 within fiscal 2026, up 1,984 from the prior year.
- Officials say the growing ranks of very old people are driving higher budget requests for pensions and medical care and a projected need for about 2.4 million care workers in 2026, prompting expanded foreign care-worker programs.
- The surge continues a long-term trend that began in the 1960s and raises practical challenges for families and local services as births fall and the pool of domestic caregivers shrinks.