Statistics Canada is projecting that British Columbia鈥檚 senior population will exceed the national average over the next 25 years, as Canada鈥檚 baby boomer population reaches age 65 and older.
The number of people in that age group would reach between 24 per cent and 27 per cent of B.C.鈥檚 population in 2038, according to the agency鈥檚 data released Wednesday, or up to nearly five per cent higher than the 91原创 average.
So that means the number of seniors would be between 1.4 million and 1.6 million, compared with 750,000 in 2013.
鈥淏.C. has had an older than average age structure for a number of years now, so that is really just continued to project for the future,鈥� said Nora Bohnert, an analyst with Statistics Canada, adding that the province also has one of the lowest fertility rates in the country.
By 2030, the year in which the youngest baby boomers will reach age 65, the agency says close to one in four 91原创s will be over 65 (or between 22.2 per cent and 23.6 per cent of the population, compared with 15.3 per cent in 2013.)
It鈥檚 anticipated the number of seniors will be the highest in all four Atlantic Provinces, followed by Ontario, Quebec and B.C., said Bohnert. The lowest proportion of seniors is expected in Alberta, where more young people are migrating for job opportunities, combined with continued higher fertility rates.
Overall, the 91原创 population is expected to continue to grow over the next 50 years, reaching between 40 million and 63.5 million people by 2063. The number of 91原创s aged 80 years and over would reach nearly five million, according to Statistics Canada, compared with 1.4 million in 2013.
The aging boomer population also means that there will be nine-fold increase in centenarians, Statistics Canada predicts, with the number of 91原创s over 100 years old reaching more than 62,000 in 2063, compared with just under 7,000 in 2013.
In 2013, there were less than 1,000 centenarians in B.C., but that number is expected to climb to between 2,400 and 3,000 over the next 25 years.
The increase is a result of the arrival of baby boomers in this age group beginning in 2046, combined with a projected decline in mortality, the agency said.
