A Total Fertility Rate (average number of children per woman during her fertile years) of 2.1 is required to maintain our population levels by births alone. The last time the TFR was 2.1 was 1971.1 By 2006 the TFR had dropped to 1.59. After a brief increase, the TFR fell to 1.61 in 2011.2
The fertility rate of women aged 40 to 44 increased 2.5 times between 1989 and 2009.3
Population estimates show that in 2009 there were 120 children per 100 seniors (65+) in Canada. Statistics Canada predicts that by 2036, the corresponding ratio of children to seniors could be between 58 and 75 children per 100 seniors in Canada. Statistics Canada suggests that by 2061 the rate could be between 50 and 74 children per 100 seniors.4
According to Statistics Canada population projections, seniors 65 and older will begin to outnumber children 14 years old and under between 2015 and 2021.5
In 2011, seniors accounted for 14.3 percent of the Canadian population. This was the highest percentage of seniors in Canadian history.6
In 2011, there were fewer people age 15 to 24 than people age 55 to 64. This was the first time in Canada that there have been more people in the age cohort associated with leaving the labour force than people in the age cohort associated with entering the labour force.7
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