Project Silver Columbia and longstay: insights from Japan for the study of the worldwide elderly migration

Abstract

As in most developed economies of the world, Japanese low fertility rates have been a pressing issue for the last decades. In this sense, the debate on migration is crucial not only to keep the benefits attained by the Japanese during the period of high economic growth in the end of 20th century, but also to thrive in the years to come. Most migration policies related to the balance of age cohorts invites younger people to immigrate; however, in Japan, there was a public initiative in the end of the 1980’s, which promoted the emigration of elderly, the Silver Columbia project. This paper presents a review of Silver Columbia and its aftermath using articles from academic journals and media discussing arguments against and for its implementation. The experience was both a controversial measure to support a nationwide population policy and failed because of the lack of application of basic marketing principles in the public sector. The case study brings valuable insight for the worldwide elderly migration, their active participation in host societies and tourism.