25-10 - Flipbook - Page 94
Hephzibah
Ministries
Japan sets record of nearly 100,000
people aged over 100
The number of people in Japan aged 100 or older has risen to a record high of nearly
100,000, its government has announced.
Setting a new record for the 55th year in a row, the number of centenarians in Japan was
99,763 as of September, the health ministry said on Friday. Of that total, women accounted
for an overwhelming 88%.
Japan has the world's longest life expectancy, and is known for often being home to the
world's oldest living person - though some studies contest the actual number of centenarians worldwide.
It is also one of the fastest ageing societies, with residents often having a healthier diet but a
low birth rate.
The oldest person in Japan is 114-year-old Shigeko Kagawa, a woman from Yamatokoriyama, a suburb of the city Nara. Meanwhile, the oldest man is Kiyotaka Mizuno, 111, from the
coastal city of Iwata.
Health minister Takamaro Fukoka congratulated the 87,784 female and 11,979 male cente-
narians on their longevity and expressed his "gratitude for their many years of contributions
to the development of society".
Jessica Rawnsley & Stephanie Hegarty
