In 2000, 3.5% of Bangladeshis were aged 65 or older. By 2025 the United Nations Population Division estimated the share at 6.7%, almost twice as high.
3.5% → 6.7%
Share of the population aged 65 and above, 2000 to 2025.
The change is recent. The share barely moved through the 1990s (3.5% in 1990, 3.5% in 2000), then climbed every year: 4.2% in 2010, 5.8% in 2020 and 6.5% in 2024. Falling fertility and rising life expectancy, both documented elsewhere on this site, push the older age groups up as a share of the whole.
For health policy the implication is a changing caseload. Older people are more likely to need long-term care for chronic conditions, and a health system built around maternal, child and infectious disease services will need to add services for them. The data here show the demographic shift, not what it will cost or how well the system is placed to respond.
A caveat: these are modelled estimates and projections from the UN’s World Population Prospects, not a head count. Bangladesh’s own census may differ, and recent years are partly projected.
Source: United Nations Population Division, World Population Prospects, via World Bank WDI (SP.POP.65UP.TO.ZS).