One in four Moldovans is over 60 years old

One in four persons in the Republic of Moldova is over 60 years old and 14% of the country's population are octogenarians or older, the National Bureau of Statistics reported. More than one half of the elderly population are women and two-thirds of them live in rural areas. The leading causes of death among the elderly are circulatory disorders, accounting for 70% of the total deaths, plus malign tumors and diseases of the digestive system. The expected lifetime of 60-year-old men and women is 14.84 and 18.35 years, respectively. The life expectancy of the urban elderly is by 1.82 years higher than of the rural ones. Concerning the elderly's monthly incomes this year, the Statistics Bureau indicated that there was no major change from last year, representing 1035.1 lei on average. October 1 is the International Day of Older persons.