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Central China's Henan Province, the country's most populous area, has become one of the first provinces to have an aging society by international standards.
According to the latest statistics of the fifth census, 6.48 million people, 7.1 percent of Henan's population, were aged 65 orover on November 1 of 2000. The figure is above the international level for an aging society.
By about 2040 the province will have the largest number of elderly people in China with one out of every four to five people aged 60 or over, a government official predicts.
In addition to Henan, there are 12 municipalities, provinces and autonomous regions with more than 7 percent of their population aged 65 or over.
(People's Daily July 22, 2002)
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