HANOI, July 22 (Xinhua) -- Over 20 percent of Vietnam's population will be at least 60 years old by 2038, said a health ministry official.

By 2049, the rate will increase to some 25 percent, online newspaper VnExpress quoted Nguyen Doan Tu, head of the General Office for Population and Family Planning under the Vietnamese Ministry of Health, as saying.

The country officially has been faced with an aging population since 2011, with nearly 10 percent elderly people, and the rate rose to 11.95 percent in 2018, Tu said, adding that the life expectancy of Vietnamese people is 73 years, and 68 percent of the elderly live in rural areas.

On average, a Vietnamese elderly person suffers three diseases and the country's healthcare system has not yet met the increasing needs of the elderly.

Vietnam is the 15th most populous country in the world with over 96.2 million people as of April 1, according to its General Statistics Office.