Over 1 million seniors live alone

The number of elderly people living alone in Korea exceeded 1 million for the first time this year, raising the need for more support to address their livelihood, nursing care and social exclusion.

According to the report by the Ministry of Strategy and Finance and Statistics Korea, more than 1.04 million seniors aged 65 or older live on their own, up about 5.8 percent from a year earlier. They make up more than 10 percent of the age group. 

By age, people in their 70s take the largest portion with 56.3 percent. Their children left for cities for work during Korea’s rapid industrialization in the 1960s and 70s.

Those between the ages of 65 and 69 accounted for 26.8 percent. More than 176,000 aged 80 or older live by themselves, equivalent to nearly 17 percent of the total.