Women 50-Plus Are Major Drivers of Global Economy: AARP Report

En español | With their numbers around the world expected to double by 2050, women at midlife and beyond are powerful drivers of the global economy, according to a new AARP report.

Titled “How Women 50-Plus Are Driving the Global Longevity Economy,” the report puts a spotlight on the contributions women are making to world economic activity — and what policymakers and business leaders can do to harness the economic potential in the decades to come.

AARP CEO Jo Ann Jenkins released the report to an audience of 600 women Wednesday at the Forbes 30/50 Summit in the United Arab Emirates, to coincide with International Women’s Day. Among the key takeaways:

● The global population of older women is growing. In 2020, there were 605 million women age 60-plus worldwide. That’s projected to nearly double to 1.14 billion by 2050.

● Women around the world provide more than three-quarters (76.2 percent) of the total hours of unpaid care work. 

● Women drive 64 percent of consumer spending decisions worldwide. By 2028, they’re projected to control 75 percent of discretionary spending globally.

● In the United States alone, companies owned by women contributed almost $3 trillion to the nation’s economy and created 23 million jobs.

Overall, the 50-plus population’s effect on the global economy is projected to more than double over the next three decades, growing from $45 trillion in 2020 to $118 trillion in 2050, according to an AARP study released in November. But challenges such as pay disparities, age and gender discrimination, and limited resources for caregivers can hinder economic opportunities.

“To unlock the full economic potential of the global longevity economy and optimize the impact of women 50-plus, we must come together to drive change and erase disparities,” Jenkins said in a statement. “Policymakers and businesses each have a role to play.”

Read the report and learn more about how older adults are fueling the global economy.