In effect, Japan's population pyramid has inverted: the dependency ratio of workers to elderly, which was historically under 20%, is currently around 50% and is projected to increase to ~90% by 2050.
Basically the government raising its hand in the air and chanting “we care about you, we’re working super hard because it’s such a huge problem” while just thinking the problem will solve itself naturally.
Top middle class and above people have no issue with current demographic problems, and the current elderly population is surprinsigly well behaved and docile given the situation they are in (hell, France has demos for 4 months now and it’s nowhere as dire)
An interview from a while ago: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/09/22/national/politi...
> “Japan may be aging. Japan may be losing its population. But these are incentives for us,” he said.
> “Why? Because we will continue to be motivated to grow our productivity,” Abe added, citing robots, wireless sensors, and artificial intelligence as among the tools to do so. “So, Japan’s demography, paradoxically, is not an onus, but a bonus.”
Of course he’s just the facade of a party, he’ll also give other speeches about how they have very solid plans to help the elderly etc. But I kinda feel the above interview was an actual genuine view of how they see the situation.