Latin America and the Caribbean is aging at an accelerated and unprecedented rate. At present, 11 percent of its inhabitants are over 60 years old, a percentage that still does not amount to what is considered to be an aging population, as in the case of Europe (23.9 percent) or North America (20.8 percent). However, it is expected that by 2030 the population over 60 in Latin America and the Caribbean will reach 17 percent, and by 2050 one in every four inhabitants of the region will have reached that age. Europe needed 65 years to travel the same path.
The population structures in Latin America and the Caribbean are changing and the challenges are not few. For example, 11 percent of the population over 60 years of age depends on other people for their daily care.