If a country has a very large working-age population, why does this not automatically guarantee economic benefit?

Correct answer: Because employment and skills are also necessary

A large working-age population is a potential economic resource, not an automatic economic benefit. People in this age group can contribute to production only when they are healthy, educated, appropriately skilled, and able to find suitable work. Businesses and institutions must also provide enough jobs and use workers productively. If employment is scarce, a large working-age group may instead face unemployment, insecure work, or dependence on others. Public investment in schooling, vocational training, healthcare, infrastructure, and job creation is therefore important for converting demographic potential into actual growth.

Option A is correct because employment and skills are essential conditions for benefiting from a large labour supply. Option B is false: working-age people can participate in economic activity when opportunities exist. Option C is false because children are not the only producers, and option D is false because tax contributions are not limited to elderly people. The age structure creates an opportunity, but policies and economic conditions determine whether that opportunity becomes a demographic dividend.