Abstract:
Population ageing is amongst the most critical and global demographic issues at present and
the United Nations in 2013 proclaims that "Population ageing is taking place in nearly all the
countries of the world". Similar to other countries, ageing phenomenon has become an
influencing issue in Sri Lanka, incurring a number of social and economic consequences. Sri
Lankan demographers identifies a vital increase in ageing population, and therefore it is of
timely importance to identify the spatial dynamics of ageing population throughout the country.
The main objective of this study is to ascertain the spatial trends and patterns of ageing
population by districts from 2001 to 2012. The study uses Population Census data of 2001 and
2012 and aged population is identified as those who are 60 years or above. Geographical
Information System and basic statistics are used to map and analyze the spatial patterns of the
ageing population.
