Older Adults as The Main Income Earner of The Households in Indonesia: A Preliminary Assessment

Indonesia is the fourth most populous country in the world and is facing numerous social, economic, and health challenges. One of these challenges is that Indonesia is heading towards an aging population. According to the 2020 Population Census, almost one in ten people (9.93%) are aged over 60 years. The figure is projected to double by 2045.

This significant segment of the population can potentially support the Indonesian economy if they are still healthy and job opportunities are available. However, if these older adults are still the main income earners in households, they may face heavy physical workloads and psychological job demands. Therefore, exploring the economic role of older adults in Indonesian households and their vulnerabilities would provide insights into potential issues that need to be addressed by relevant stakeholders.

Using data from the 2022 Indonesia National Socioeconomic Survey (Susenas), we find that almost one in three older persons (32.6%) still bear responsibility as the main income earner in the household. This figure was much higher in those living in rural areas (37.0%) than in those living in urban areas (29.1%). Moreover, even after excluding older persons who lived alone from the sample, the percentage of those who were burdened with the task of financing household expenses was not very different (31.9%).

When we explored this further, we found that almost one in two older persons (49.9%) reported being economically active. Among these, more than three out of five (61.9%) are the main household income earners, with a slightly higher figure in the urban area (62.5%) than in the rural area (61.4%). Again, when we excluded those living alone, the figure was not significantly different (60.5%).

Economically active older adults may have positive effects on the Indonesian economy. However, if many of them are still burdened with tasks as the main income earners of the household, this may mean that the government may need to bolster the younger generation’s human capital and increase employment opportunities so that they can take over the role of the generations in generating the main household income.