By Daily Touch Insights Editorial Team
Editorial Team
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VIETNAM & SOCIETY — Preparing for old age at 40 may sound premature, but for Vietnam it is increasingly becoming an economic and social necessity.
Vietnam is ageing rapidly. The country is expected to become an aged society during the 2030s, while the share of people aged 60 and above is projected to rise substantially over the coming decades. 0
That demographic shift creates a simple but difficult question: how can today's working-age population prepare financially, medically and professionally for a period of life that may still be decades away?
A recent proposal by Vietnam's Ministry of Health to provide guidance for people aged 40 and above has brought that question into sharper focus. The framework covers areas including healthy living, financial preparation, caregiving and career transitions. 1
Forty Is Not Old — and That Is the Point
One reason the idea of preparing for old age at 40 can sound strange is that people in their forties are generally still active in the workforce.
Many are raising children, paying mortgages or supporting parents while building their careers.
But that is precisely why 40 can be an important moment to begin planning.
Someone who starts preparing at 40 may have two or three decades to build financial security, improve their health and develop skills that can remain valuable later in life.
Waiting until retirement is approaching dramatically reduces the time available to correct mistakes.
Vietnam Is Ageing Faster Than Many People Realise
Vietnam is among the world's rapidly ageing societies.
The United Nations Population Fund says people aged 60 and older represented 11.9 percent of Vietnam's population in 2019, with that share projected to exceed 25 percent by 2050. 2
Other recent projections indicate that people aged 65 and above could account for around 14 percent of the population by 2034, putting Vietnam firmly into the category of an aged society. From 2050, the country is projected to move toward a super-aged society. 3
This is not simply a question about elderly people.
It is a question about today's workers and whether they will have enough resources when they eventually become tomorrow's retirees.
Inflation Makes Early Preparation More Important
One of the biggest reasons to start early is inflation.
Money saved today will not necessarily have the same purchasing power twenty or thirty years from now.
Even relatively moderate inflation can substantially increase the cost of housing, healthcare, food and other necessities over a long period.
That means retirement planning cannot simply ask how much money a person needs today.
It must ask how much money will be needed when that person is 60, 70 or 80.
The longer the planning horizon, the more important it becomes to consider inflation and investment returns rather than simply accumulating cash.
The Family Cannot Be the Only Retirement Plan
Vietnamese society, like many societies across Asia, has traditionally placed significant importance on family support for older people.
Adult children often play an important role in supporting ageing parents.
But demographic and economic changes are making that traditional arrangement more difficult to rely on exclusively.
Families are becoming smaller, living costs are rising and younger workers may have their own children, housing expenses and financial responsibilities.
Expecting one generation to financially support several older family members may become increasingly difficult.
Personal financial preparation therefore needs to complement family support rather than assuming that children will automatically provide everything.
Pensions Alone May Not Be Enough
Vietnam has a social insurance and pension system, but coverage remains an important challenge.
Analysis from the Asia-Pacific region has highlighted relatively limited participation in Vietnam's pension system among the working-age population. One estimate found that only 38 percent of the working-age population participated in the social insurance pension scheme at the end of 2022. 4
This means a significant number of workers may reach old age without depending entirely on a conventional pension.
For people outside formal employment, voluntary social insurance and other forms of long-term financial planning can become particularly important.
Health Is a Form of Wealth
Financial planning is only one part of preparing for old age.
Health can be equally important.
Living longer does not necessarily mean living healthier for longer.
Recent analysis of Vietnam's ageing population has highlighted the gap between life expectancy and healthy life expectancy, with older Vietnamese people often living with multiple chronic conditions. 5
Preventive healthcare during a person's forties and fifties can therefore have major consequences later.
Regular medical check-ups, physical activity, healthy nutrition and effective management of chronic-risk factors can help people remain independent for longer.
Healthcare Costs Can Destroy an Unprepared Retirement
A retirement plan that considers only food, housing and everyday expenses is incomplete.
Healthcare can become one of the largest financial pressures during old age.
Long-term treatment, medication, hospital care and assistance with daily activities can become expensive, particularly when a person lacks adequate insurance or savings.
Preparing early does not guarantee that medical problems will be avoided.
It does, however, give people more time to build financial protection against them.
People Need to Prepare for Longer Working Lives
Preparing for old age does not necessarily mean preparing to stop working completely.
Vietnam's changing demographic structure may require more people to remain economically active for longer.
That makes career planning particularly important.
Workers in their forties should consider whether their current skills will remain valuable twenty years later.
Technology, automation and changes in industries can make some occupations less secure over time.
Mid-career training can therefore be considered part of retirement planning.
Reskilling Could Extend People's Earning Years
A worker who develops new skills at 40 may have a better chance of remaining employable later in life.
That does not mean everyone needs to become a technology expert.
It means workers should continually examine where their industries are heading and whether their skills match future demand.
Experience itself can also become valuable.
Older workers may eventually transition from physically demanding roles into consulting, training, management or other forms of flexible employment.
Housing Is Another Part of Retirement Security
Housing can play an important role in financial security during old age.
A person who reaches retirement with secure housing may face considerably less financial pressure than someone who must continue paying substantial rent from a limited income.
Housing decisions should therefore be considered as part of long-term retirement planning.
The objective is not necessarily to own the most expensive property.
It is to have stable, affordable housing that remains suitable as a person's mobility and income change.
Retirement Planning Should Start With Real Numbers
One of the biggest mistakes people make is treating retirement planning as a vague ambition.
Saving “something” every month is better than saving nothing, but serious planning requires numbers.
A person should estimate future housing costs, food, healthcare, transportation, family responsibilities and other expenses.
They should then consider inflation and how many years their retirement savings may need to last.
The earlier those calculations begin, the more time there is to adjust the plan.
The Goal Is Not Simply to Accumulate Cash
Saving is important, but keeping all long-term wealth in cash can expose people to inflation.
Long-term financial planning may involve a combination of savings, pensions, investments, insurance and other assets depending on an individual's circumstances and risk tolerance.
The important principle is diversification and a clear understanding of what each asset is supposed to achieve.
People should also be cautious about investments promising unusually high returns without corresponding risks.
Vietnam Needs Better Financial Education
Individual responsibility alone cannot solve the ageing challenge.
Vietnam also needs stronger financial education so workers understand pensions, insurance, inflation, investment risk and long-term planning.
People should be able to make informed decisions before they reach retirement age rather than discovering important gaps when it is too late.
Financial education beginning in middle age could therefore become an important part of national ageing policy.
The Government Has a Role to Play
Government policy can make preparation easier.
That includes expanding social insurance coverage, improving healthcare, strengthening long-term care services and helping older workers remain economically active.
It also means creating policies that encourage people to prepare without placing unrealistic financial burdens on households.
As Vietnam's population ages, the cost of doing nothing could become considerably higher than the cost of preparing early.
Caregiving Will Become a Bigger Issue
Old age is not only about retirement income.
Some older people eventually need assistance with daily activities, medical treatment or long-term care.
The number of very old people in Vietnam is expected to grow significantly, increasing the potential demand for specialised healthcare and long-term care. 6
This means Vietnam will need to think beyond traditional family caregiving.
Professional care services, community support and accessible healthcare will become increasingly important.
Preparing at 40 Can Protect the Next Generation
There is also an intergenerational argument for early preparation.
If parents reach old age without adequate financial resources, their children may have to redirect a substantial portion of their income toward supporting them.
That can affect children's ability to buy homes, raise their own children, invest in education or build their own retirement savings.
Preparing for old age is therefore not only about protecting oneself.
It can also prevent financial pressure from being transferred from one generation to the next.
Vietnam Has a Limited Window to Prepare
Demographic transitions happen gradually, but once a society becomes significantly older, reversing the trend is extremely difficult.
Vietnam still has a large working-age population, giving policymakers and households an opportunity to prepare before the demographic burden becomes heavier.
The country should use that window to strengthen pensions, healthcare, employment opportunities and financial education.
Waiting until the population is already much older would make the adjustment considerably more expensive.
Old Age Should Be Planned as a Long Phase of Life
Retirement should not be treated as a single date on a calendar.
People may live for decades after leaving full-time employment.
That period can include travel, family life, part-time work, volunteering, learning and community participation.
But those opportunities depend heavily on health, financial security and social connections.
Planning at 40 creates more room to build all three.
What Vietnam Can Learn From Other Countries
Other ageing societies offer useful lessons, although Vietnam should not simply copy another country's system.
Singapore, for example, has built long-term savings and housing mechanisms into its broader economic system, while Australia has developed a compulsory retirement savings framework through superannuation.
The relevant lesson is not that Vietnam should reproduce either model exactly.
The lesson is that retirement security becomes easier when preparation is built into people's working lives rather than postponed until the final years before retirement.
The Real Question Is Independence
The ultimate objective of preparing early should not be fear of ageing.
It should be independence.
A financially and physically prepared older person has more choices about where to live, whether to work, how to receive healthcare and how much support to request from family.
Preparation gives people options.
Lack of preparation can take those options away.
Our Perspective
Vietnam's decision to focus attention on people aged 40 and above is not an admission that 40 is old.
It is recognition that ageing begins long before retirement.
The strongest retirement plan is built gradually through health, savings, social protection, skills and sensible housing decisions.
Vietnam's rapidly ageing population makes that preparation more urgent than ever. 7
The country should not wait until millions of people reach old age before asking whether they are financially and medically prepared. The time to build that security is while people are still working, earning and capable of making long-term choices.
Conclusion
Preparing for old age at 40 is not about expecting people to stop living in the present.
It is about recognising that financial security, good health and professional resilience take years to build.
Vietnam's rapid demographic transition makes this especially important. The country is moving toward an older population while its pension, healthcare and long-term care systems face increasing demands. 8
For individuals, the message is straightforward: start early, understand the numbers, protect your health, build skills and avoid assuming that family support will solve every problem.
For policymakers, the responsibility is broader: strengthen social protection, expand pension coverage, improve healthcare and create opportunities for older people to remain economically and socially active.
Vietnam's ageing challenge will not be solved when today's workers turn 60. It will be solved by the decisions they, their families and their government make decades earlier.
