Page 35 - 2022 Abstract Book RUICHSS_2022_11_17 after conference

University of Ruhuna ISSN: 2706-0063
Matara, Sri Lanka

The Elderly Population and Economic Growth; A Benefit or
Burden?

Thaveesha Jayawardhana*, Sachini Anuththara, Thamasha Nimnadi, Ridhmi
Karadanaarachchi, Ruwan Jayathilaka and Kethaka Galappaththi
SLIIT Business School, Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology.
thaveesha.jaya@gmail.com

This research examines the causal relationship between the elderly population and
global economic growth using a panel data set from the years 1961 to 2020. The
annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) percentage change is used to measure
economic growth. The population aged 65 years and above as a percentage of the
total population, was considered as the elderly population. The Panel, Granger
causality test, investigates the relationship between the elderly population and
economic growth. The results show that the Granger causality is unidirectional for
the African and Oceanic continents. It was discovered that bidirectional Granger-
causality corresponded with Asian, European, North American, and South American
continents. Although the study concludes that there is an endogenous relationship
between economic growth and the elderly population, this relationship does not
become apparent until an economy has completed its economic development
transition.

Keywords: Economic Growth, Elderly population, Continents, Panel Vector
Autoregression, Granger causality

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