Article content continued

Invest in birthday candles In 2013, there were just under 7,000 Canadians who had reached age 100. By 2063, with aging boomers and medical advances, this number will swell to more than 62,000 under a medium-growth scenario. The population aged 80 and over is projected to hit nearly 5-million by 2063, up from 1.4-million in 2013.

Workers wanted In 2013, 69% of the population was of working age, between 15 and 64 years old. All projection scenarios show that figure dropping significantly, hitting roughly 60% in 2030 before leveling off.

The shrinking East Most projection scenarios show Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick all losing population over the next 25 years. This is because of their relatively older age structure, their small share of Canadian immigration and their tendency to lose people to other provinces. Newfoundland is projected to be the hardest hit, dropping to 455,600 under the medium-growth scenario from 526,700 in 2013.

Except Prince Edward Island P.E.I. is the Atlantic outlier, projected to see its population increase by 23% under a medium-growth scenario. This is because Islanders are younger than their Atlantic neighbours and less inclined to emigrate. Still, P.E.I. will remain the smallest province, with a projected 0.4% of the Canadian population.

Quebec will grow thanks to immigration But its share of the Canadian population will continue to shrink. From 28.9% of the population in 1951, Quebec was down to 23.2% in 2013 and — with a projected 9.4-million people — it will hit 21.6% in 2038.