Our population will shrink despite increasing longevity. The rich account for 40 percent of consumption

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Our population will shrink
despite increasing longevity

The rich account

for 40 percent of consumption

The population is enjoying a better life and spending more, according to a special report about changes in population and household living conditions, published in the September issue of Lebanon Opportunities.

An average of 1.7 children per woman has been recorded in recent years. This is below the replacement rate of 2.1 children per woman, and will lead to a decrease in population.

The increase in the elderly population, which has already reached nine percent, has caused a surge in dependency ratios. For every two workers, there is one person dependent on them for their living requirements.

Registered marriages exceeded 40,000 in 2016, compared to more than 8,000 divorces for the same period. This means that 20 percent of marriages end in divorce.

Three quarters of youth who have emigrated hold a Bachelor's degree in ICT, business, or science. A study conducted by USJ’s Choghig Kasparian shows that around 45 percent of these youth hold senior managerial positions and work in scientific or white collar jobs.

The Household Budget Survey showed that the poorest 20 percent of the population accounted for eight percent of total consumption, while the richest 20 percent accounted for almost 40 percent.

Around 70 percent of the population owns a home. But still, the ability of households to purchase a home is of particular concern for low and middle income groups, for whom a house costs nine times a couples’ average annual income.

The country ranks 17th worldwide for the number of registered cars per capita. Households spend 15 percent of their monthly expenditure on transportation.

Reported by Samer Rasbey

Date Posted: Sep 19, 2017