The number of centenarians in Japan totaled 67,824 as of Friday, hitting a record high for the 47th consecutive year, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said.
From a year earlier, the centenarian figure based on basic resident register data rose by 2,132, according to the ministry’s report released before Respect for the Aged Day on Monday.
The number of people in the country aged 100 or higher, which stood at 153 in the first survey year of 1963, topped 10,000 in 1998. Since surpassing the 30,000 mark in 2007, the centenarian population has doubled in 10 years, the ministry said.
The latest survey also found that women’s headcount increased 2,102 to account for 88 pct of the total. Men’s number rose by 30.
There were 53.43 centenarians per 100,000 people nationwide. Among the country’s 47 prefectures, Shimane logged the largest rate per 100,000, at 97.54, topping the list for five years in a row.
Source: Jiji Image: ANN
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