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Trends in Elderly Poverty in Hong Kong: A Decomposition Analysis

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Abstract

Despite significant improvements in education and a decline in the percentage of immigrants in elderly population, the poverty risk in old age and the actual number of impoverished elders in Hong Kong have both increased significantly over the past two decades. This study assesses the changing rates of elderly poverty in Hong Kong over the last 20 years and, by means of decomposition analysis, identifies the factors shaping their evolution. The analysis is based on the 5 % microdata samples from the 1991, 2001, and 2011 censuses covering Hong Kong residents aged 65 and above. The results show that the rate of poverty among older adults increased from 27.7 % in 1991 to 38.7 % in 2001, and then to 41.4 % in 2011. The increase was largely caused by a significant decline in the number of earners in the households with older adults, which offset the poverty-reducing effects of education and the percentage decrease of immigrants.

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Acknowledgments

This work was funded by the Research Grant Council Strategic Public Policy Research Scheme (HKIEd 7001-SPPR-11) and the Humanities and Social Sciences Prestigious Fellowship Scheme (38600214).

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  1. Department of Asian and Policy Studies, The Hong Kong Institute of Education, 10 Lo Ping Road, Tai Po, New Territories, Hong Kong, China

    Siu-Yau Lee & Kee-Lee Chou

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  1. Siu-Yau Lee
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  2. Kee-Lee Chou
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Correspondence to Siu-Yau Lee.

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Lee, SY., Chou, KL. Trends in Elderly Poverty in Hong Kong: A Decomposition Analysis. Soc Indic Res 129, 551–564 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-015-1120-5

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