A Comparative Analysis of Aging Policies in Norway, Japan, Singapore and Thailand
Keywords:
Policy analysis, ageing policy, Norway, Japan, Singapore, ThailandAbstract
This review paper has two objectives. First, to study ageing policies in countries noted for good practice, including Norway, Japan, and Singapore. Second, to undertake a preliminary analysis of ageing policies among the three abovementioned countries with Thailand. The review paper was based on secondary data to explain the existing knowledge on ageing policies in the targeted countries. then Walt and Gibson model (1994) was used to analyze the secondary data. It was found that in terms of context, Norway, Japan, and Singapore have positive economic and social infrastructure with a high ratio of ageing populations. Thailand is a newly industrialized country with higher poverty sector than these three other countries. With regard to content, the policies of the three exampled countries cover health insurance, medical care, short-term and long-term accommodation, extended retirement, and new technology use. In contrast, a greater proportion of Thai elder programs emphasize many forms of social assistance due to the higher proportion of elderly under the poverty line. Regarding major mechanisms, Norway has their Government Pension Fund-Global; Japan has Long-term Care Insurance; Singapore has a Central Provident Fund and health. Thailand has a Social Security Fund elderly allowance. The main policy actors in Norway’s Fund are the local government and volunteers; Japan’s includes local government, profit and non-profit social entrepreneurs, and social capital; Singapore’s are public and private agencies, and Thailand’s include government agencies and local government. Finally, the paper recommends some guidelines for the future Thai ageing society.
References
Aarheim K. A. (2014). Eldercare in Norway: Content, organization, and financing the care system: A brief history, current status, and future prospects. In Campbell, J. C., Edvardsen, U., Midford, P., & Saito, Y. (eds). Eldercare Policies in Japan and Scandinavia. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137402639_3.
Aruntippaitoon, S. (B.E.2557). Policy Proposals to Support Thailand's Elderly Society. Retrieved from http://www.dop.go.th/th/know/4/84.
Bloom, D. E., Kirby, P., Sevilla, J., & Stawasz, A. (2018). Japan's Age Wave: Challenges and Solutions. Retrieved from https://voxeu.org/article/japan-s-age-wave-challenges-and-solutions.
Bloomberg. (2020). Japanese Head of World’s Biggest Pension Fund Looks Beyong Sovereign Debt for Future Returns. Retrieved from https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/08/13/business/financial-markets /japanese-worlds-biggest-pension-fund-debt/.
Browne, J., Coffey, B., Cook, K., Meiklejohn, S., & Palermo, C. (2019) A guide to policy analysis as a research method. Health Promotion International, 34(5), 1032-1044.
Buse, K., Mays, N., & Walt, G. (2012). Making Health Policy. UK: McGraw-hill Education.
Campbell, J. C., & Saito, Y. (2014). Eldercare Policies in Japan and Scandinavia: Ageing Societies East and West. Palgrave Macmillan.
Chamchan, C. (B.E.2563). Old-age allowance policy and poverty among Thai older persons. University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce Journal Humanities and Social Sciences, 40(3), 15-30.
Chanduwit, W. (2020). Keep Track of the Happiness of Thai People. Retrieved from https://tdri.or.th/ 2020/11/the-happiness-survey/.
Chittinandana, D., Kulnartsiri, N., Pinthong, J., & Sawaengsuksant, P. (2017). Aging Population: Global Perspectives. Bank of Thailand. Slide Presentation. Retrieved from https://www.bot.or.th/ Thai/Research AndPublications/DocLib_/AgingPopulation.pdf.
Coulmas, F. (2007). Population Decline and Ageing in Japan: The Social Consequences. New York: Routledge.
Department of Older Persons. (B.E.2562). Measures on the National Agenda on the Aging Society. Bangkok: Samlada Printing.
Dror, Y. (1968). Public Policy Making Re-Examined. San Francisco: Chandler.
Dye, T. R. (1984). Understanding Public Policy. 15th ed. Englewood Cliffs, CA: N.J. Prentice-Hall.
Freedom House. (2020). Global Freedom Status 2020. Retrieved from https://freedomhouse.org/explore-the-map?type=fiw&year=2021.
Gilson, L., Orgill, M., & Shroff, Z. C. (2018). A Health Policy Analysis Reader: The Politics of Policy Change in Low- and Middle-Income Countries. Geneva: World Health Organization.
HelpAge International. (2014). Global Age Watch Index 2014. Retrieved from https://www.helpage.org/ global-agewatch/population-ageing-data/global-rankings-table/.
Hempornwisarn, W., & Akkharachalarnot, P. (B.E.2557). Building Financial Stability after Retirement for Thais. Retrieved from https://www.sec.or.th/TH/Documents/Research/research-0957-retirement.pdf.
Hiraoka, K. (2014). Quality of care services in the Japanese system of long-term care. In Saito, Y., & Edvardsen, U. Eldercare Policies in Japan and Scandinavia: Ageing Societies East and West. Palgrave.
Ikegami, N. (2007). Rationale, design and sustainability of long-term care insurance in Japan – in retrospect. Social Policy and Society, 6(3), 423-434.
IMD. (2019). IMD World Competitiveness Ranking 2019 One Year Change. Retrieved from https://www.imd.org/contentassets/6b85960f0d1b42a0a07ba59c49e828fb/one-year-change-vertical.pdf.
JapanGov. (2018). Abenomics: for Future Growth, for Future Generations, and for a Future Japan. Retrieved from https://www.japan.go.jp/abenomics/_userdata/abenomics/pdf/1809_ abenomics.pdf.
Junthothai, D. (B.E.2563). Ageing society management: Lessons learned from Japan. The Journal of Law, Public Administration and Social Science, 4(1), 159-182.
Ma, F. et al. (2015). Task shifting of HIV/AIDS case management to community health service centers in urban China: A qualitative policy analysis. BMC Health Services Research, 15, 253. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-015-0924-y.
Mehta, K. K. (2019). Positive Ageing: How can We Make It Happen? ETHOS Biannual publication ofthe Civil Service College, Singapore. (Jan 2019 Issue), 69-79. Retrieved from www.cscollege.gov.sg/ethos.
Midford, P. (2014). Conclusion: The salience of eldercare. In Campbell, J. C., Edvardsen, U., Midford, P., & Saito, Y. (Eds.). Eldercare Policies in Japan and Scandinavia: Aging Societies East and West. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. (2012). An Outline of the Japanese Medical System. Retrieved from https://www.mhlw.go.jp/english/policy/health-medical/health-insurance/index.html.
Nakatani, H. (2019). Population aging in Japan: policy transformation, sustainable development goals, universal health coverage, and social determinates of health. Global Health Medicine, 1(1), 3-10.
National Savings Fund. (B.E.2563). The history of the National Savings Fund. Retrieved from https://www.nsf.or.th /index.php/2016-02-10-11-29-25/2016-05-24-08-12-48.
Nordic Co-operation. (2020). The Norwegian Pension System. Retrieved form https://www.norden.org /en/info-norden/norwegian-pension-system.
Nuchprayool, P., Suntapun, C., & Anantanasuwong, D. (B.E.2562). State policy and legal evolution regarding employment, health protection and wellbeing of older persons in Singapore. NITIPAT NIDA, 8(1), 59-81.
OECD. (2016). OECD Territorial Reviews: Japan 2016. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/97 89264250543-en.
______. (2017a). OECD Economic Survey of Japan 2017. Retrieved from https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/economics/oecd-economic-surveys-japan-2017_eco_surveys-jpn-2017-en
______. (2017b). OECD Health Statistics 2017. Retrieved from www.oecd.org/els/health-systems/health-data.htm.
______. (2018). Japan: Promoting Inclusive Growth for an Ageing Society. Rogerson Andrew and Stacey Simon. 2018. Successful Aging in Singapore. Geriatrics. 3(81). April 2018.
Office of the Civil Service Commission. (B.E.2562). Progress on the Extension of the Retirement Age. Retrieved from https://www.ocsc.go.th/node/4990.
Olderfund. (B.E.2563). History of the Elderly Fund. Retrieved from http://www.olderfund.dop.go.th/ content/index/6/page.
Oni, E. O. (2016). Public policy analysis. In Fundamentals of Politics and Governance. Concept Publications.
Prachachat. (B.E.2563). Japan Prepares to Double the Social Security Fee for the Elderly. Retrieved from https://www.prachachat.net/world-news/news-575077.
Paitoonpong, P. (B.E.2561). Singapore is Rich before Getting Old? Retrieved from https://tdri.or.th/2018/07.
Parsons, W. (1995). Public Policy: An Introduction to the Theory and Practice of Policy Analysis. UK: Edward Elgar.
Quade, E. S. (1975). Analysis for Public Decisions. New York: American Elsevier.
Rankin, J. (2017). Happiness is on the Wane in the US, UN Global Report Find. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/20/norway-ousts-denmark-as-worlds-happiest-country-un-report.
Rhee, J. C., Done, N., & Anderson, G. F. (2015). Considering long-term care insurance for middle-income countries: Comparing South Korea with Japan and Germany. Health Policy, 119(10), 1319-1329.
Ringard A., Sagan A., Saunes I. S., & Lindahl A. K. (2013). Norway health system review. Health Systems in Transition, 15(8). Retrieved from https://www.euro.who.in t/__data/assets /pdf_file/0018/ 237204/HiT-Norway.pdf.
Rogerson, A., & Stacey, S. (2018). Successful ageing in Singapore. Geriatrics (Basel, Switzerland), 3(4), 81.
Rudden, J. (2020). Leading Global Sovereign Wealth Funds 2020. from https://www.statista.com /statistics/276617/sovereign-wealth-funds-worldwide-based-on-assets-under-management/.
Sigurosson, E. O. (2017). Impacts of Population Aging in Modern Japan and Possible Solutions for the Future. Retrieved from https://skemman.is/bitstream/1946/26688/1/BA%20thesis%20-%20Eggert%20-%20Final.pdf.
Sudo, K., Kobayashi, J., Noda, S., Fukuda, Y., & Taka-hashi, K. (2018). Japan’s healthcare policy for the elderly through the concepts of self-help (Ji-jo), mutual aid (Go-jo), social solidarity care (Kyo-jo), and governmental care (Ko-jo). Biosci Trends, 12(1), 7-11.
Sogstad, M., Helleso, R., & Skinner, M. S. (2020). The development of a new care service landscape in Norway. Health Services Insights.
Solomon, R. (2019). Looking overseas to solve Japan’s labor shortage. The Japan Times. November 8, 2019. https://www.japantimes.co.jp>opinion>japan-commentary.
Tamiya, N. et al. (2011). Population ageing and wellbeing: lessons from Japan’s long-term care insurance policy, The Lancet, 378(9797), 1183-1192.
Tangtipongkul, K. (B.E.2561). Expanding Employment Opportunities for the Elderly in the Private Sector in Thailand. Retrieved from http://www.setthasarn.econ.tu.ac.th/blog/detail/20/.
The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited. (2017). Revenge of the “Deplorables”. The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited.
The Securities and Exchange Commission. (B.E.2564). Provident Fund Number. Retrieved from https://market.sec.or.th/public/idisc/th/CapitalMarketReport/PP28.
UNDP. (2009). Human Development Report 2009. New York: United Nations Development Programme.
______. (2019). Human Development Report 2019. New York: United Nations Development Programme.
United Nations Population Fund & HelpAge International. (2012). Ageing in the Twenty-First Century: A Celebration and A Challenge. New York: United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
United Nations. (2017). World Population Ageing 2017: Highlights. New York: United Nations.
Walt, G., & Gilson L. (1994). Reforming the health sector in developing countries: The central role of policy analysis. Health Policy Plan, 1994(9), 353-70.
World Bank. (2008). The World Bank Pension Conceptual Framework. Washington, D.C.: World Bank.
World Economic Forum. (2018). The Global Gender Gap Report 2018. Geneva: World Economic Forum.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
