The Age of Decay - by Shamil Ismail (Paperback)

About the Book

Analyst Shamil Ismail explores how aging populations and declining birth rates are leading to a shrinking workforce of essential workers, which could massively disrupt future societies and economies, resulting in an age of decay.

Book Synopsis

Drawing on seemingly unrelated instances of essential worker shortages around the world, investment analyst Shamil Ismail connects the dots to build a compelling and well-researched narrative explaining why aging populations and declining birth rates are leading to a shrinking workforce of essential workers in developed countries, which could massively disrupt their societies and economies.

Ismail methodically unpacks the factors driving this escalating crisis, and shows why proposed solutions such as automation, AI, and raising the retirement age will not fix the problem. Ultimately, attitudes to immigration must change, as more and more affected countries will need to "import" workers and consumers to prop up their economies and maintain their standards of living.

When are we likely to see the first major signs of this new reality? Which countries will be first impacted, and by when? How will companies and investment markets be affected? What could the world look like in the decades to come? And what will this mean for the future of our children? Sifting through the data, trends and forecasts, Ismail answers these intriguing questions, allowing us to prepare for the daunting future that lies ahead.

Review Quotes

"Catapults you into a future scenario that cannot be ignored."

Dr Pali Lehohla, past Chair of the UN Statistics Commission

"An intriguing analysis of how our lives could be impacted by the changing demographic trends. A must-read for anyone interested in how the future could unfold. Captivating, carefully considered and well-argued."

Darrell Bricker, co-author of Empty Planet-The Shock of Global Population Decline

"A tautly written and well-researched book."

Professor Charles Goodhart, London School of Economics; co-author of The Great Demographic Reversal: Ageing Societies, Waning Inequality, and an Inflation Revival

"Shamil Ismail's welcome focus on this critical and inelastic portion of the workforce-essential workers-requires a refinement in the definition of the dependency ratio. The effective labour force available to generate economic growth as we know it just got smaller."

Manoj Pradhan, Talking Heads Macroeconomics; co-author of The Great Demographic Reversal: Ageing Societies, Waning Inequality, and an Inflation Revival