Zeeland is as grey as Japan
The Netherlands is getting greyer, and mostly around the sides, according to new figures from the CBS.
In the last two decades, older people have tended to live increasingly in the countryside near sea and land borders. About 18% of Dutch people are at least 65 years old, but in Dutch Flanders it is almost a quarter. Groningen, Drenthe, de Achterhoek, Limburg and Zeeland also have a high concentration of older citizens.
A spokesman for the CBS said that Zeeland’s high proportion of pensioners ‘is almost as many as in Japan, the greyest country in the world.’
Amsterdam, The Hague and other cities, are relatively young. ‘Young people often move to the city for a job or study, but stay in the cities and suburbs, which are growing,’ he added.
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