Two countries have the same total population, but the working-age share is 68 percent in country X and 52 percent in country Y. Other things equal, which conclusion is more appropriate?

Correct answer: Country X may have a lower age-based dependency burden

The working-age share helps indicate how many people may participate in production and support children and older adults. If country X has 68 percent in the working-age group, its combined child and elderly share is 32 percent, assuming the categories cover the whole population. In country Y, the corresponding non-working-age share is 48 percent. Other conditions being equal, X may therefore have fewer dependants relative to its working-age population and a lower age-based dependency burden.

Option A is correct, but the word “may” is important. A lower dependency burden does not automatically guarantee prosperity; employment, health, productivity, migration, and participation also matter. B is false because Y still has dependants, C is false because the age structures differ, and D wrongly treats total population as more important than composition. Equal population totals do not imply equal demographic pressures.