Ageing in the Twenty-First Century: - HelpAge International

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Chapter 2: A fresh look at evidence – A vital role in society We work to end discrimination “I came to Addis Ababa because I am Vice President of the Ethiopian Elderly and Pensioners National Association. I appreciate my old age because I am still active in society. Age has given me experience and a better understanding of society; I can teach the young generation. Older people who are not educated do not know their human rights; they just accept. So people who are strong and literate should protect others. This is my message to older people as well as to the young. We are forming our own associations and making others aware of how the poorest older people are living. I think we can work together to assist those who are neglected and suffer from discrimination, to protect them through our work with the Government. Our associations must be strengthened, they have to be networked, and they have to know what mistreatment is going on. They should be the first to address this. Then, we must work with the Government – with this I am sure that discrimination against older people will be reduced. Youth, women, teachers, lawyers – they all have to be concerned. This is not only an issue for older people though; young people are also going to become older. If we all work hard and this discrimination is stopped now, their life in old age will be very successful and good. The situation now is better than 10 years ago, it will be better in the coming five years and I am sure and hopeful that age discrimination will be at least minimized, with the Government, society and older people’s associations working together.” Tilahun Abebe, 76, Vice President, Ethiopian Elderly and Pensioners National Association Erna Mentesnot Hintz/HelpAge International “The older persons’ monitoring group has helped so much that older people in this group are being seen as decision makers at the local level.” Ghana “I have been consulted on many things in this community by the leader of the older people’s association. She asks me what I want to see and how I think we can make a plan.” Cambodia “I am very happy that there is an older people’s association in my neighbourhood. Now I do not feel lonely anymore.” Indonesia “It is the citizen’s right of older people to vote.” Mozambique “Older people are now involved in most decisions in the community. We now handle issues that we previously took to the chiefs.” Ghana “The Government responds to the needs of older people during the elections.” Philippines “Yes, it is important to vote.” Jamaica “We regularly vote but it seems that nobody listens to us. They all promise, and lie.” Bosnia and Herzegovina “It’s very important to earn older people’s votes for policymaking because there are so many of them.” Austria 40 Ageing in the Twenty-First Century: A Celebration and A Challenge
Income security in old age The challenges that population ageing creates for economies are being widely debated by policymakers. There are concerns that population ageing will negatively affect economic output, or even lead to deflation, and questions about how countries will be able to afford social security as their populations grow older. Most countries have experienced economic growth (apart from during the recent global financial and economic crisis) and are richer today than they were years ago. However, despite the growth of the global economy, a large proportion of the world’s population still lives in poverty. This section addresses poverty and social exclusion in older age and discusses two mechanisms to reduce or eradicate poverty, namely social transfers and full and productive employment. Poverty and social exclusion “Where poverty is endemic, persons who survive a lifetime of poverty often face an old age of deepening poverty.” (Madrid Plan, para. 45) Poverty is one of the main threats to the well-being of the older population. It is linked to low income, lack of pension benefits, low literacy, poor health and malnutrition. Access to health care, good nutrition, basic services and adequate shelter is limited for many of the world’s older poor. Many older persons have no regular income. Old age brings with it a reduced capacity for work, which increases the likelihood of older people becoming and remaining poor. Poverty in old age has a strong gender dimension. Women’s life expectancy is higher than that of men, so that they may spend more time living in poverty than men. They are more likely to lose their partner, and less likely to remarry. Lower education levels and the need to combine work with childcare means that women are more likely to work in the informal sector. They are often paid less than men. Older women, especially widows and those without children, are particularly vulnerable, both economically and socially. In 2007, WHO found, for example, that particular groups of older women were more at risk of poverty in all countries, including those who are widowed, divorced or with disabilities, and those caring for grandchildren and children orphaned by AIDS. 28 Eradication of poverty among older persons is one of the fundamental aims of the Madrid Plan. In spite of significant development gains in the last decade, 20 per cent of the world’s population lived below the international poverty line of US$1.25 a day in 2005. 29 A key question in relation to ageing is to understand where older people fit within the context of pervasive poverty. On average, existing studies suggest that older people, and people living in households with an older person, face higher levels of poverty. In OECD countries, the old-age poverty rate is slightly higher than the average for the whole population, at 13.3 per cent, compared with 10.6 per cent. 30 A review of existing survey evidence from sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America suggests that in most countries older people are over-represented among the poor in the majority of countries surveyed. 31 Yet, despite these trends, the situation varies significantly from country to country. In OECD countries, older people are relatively poorer in 19 countries, but relatively better off in 11. Similarly, household data from 15 countries in sub-Saharan Africa show that the incidence of poverty in households with an older person is higher than the average population in 11 of these countries, but the difference is statistically significant in only nine of them. 32 Recent data from Latin America shows that the incidence of poverty is about 30 per cent in nine countries with good data. In El Salvador, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Honduras and Paraguay, more than 40 per cent of the population aged 60 and over is poor. Almost one third of this group can be considered as indigent. 33 The latest evidence of how European countries differ in terms of poverty risks for older persons (aged 65 and over) shows that, on average, older people have a higher poverty rate than the total population. 34 The highest poverty rates for older people were observed in Latvia (51 per cent), Cyprus (49 per cent), Estonia (39 per cent) and Bulgaria (34 per cent) and the lowest in Hungary (4 per cent), Luxemburg (5 per cent) and the Czech Republic (7 per cent). 35 In general, countries with low poverty risk rates for older persons have a good social safety net in the form of a basic pension and/or they offer strong redistribution in earnings-related contributory pension schemes. 36 41
Page 1 and 2: Ageing in the Twenty-First Century:
Page 3 and 4: Ageing in the Twenty-First Century:
Page 5 and 6: Contents 6 List of abbreviations 7
Page 7 and 8: Acknowledgements Acknowledgements O
Page 9 and 10: Preface This is a special year for
Page 11 and 12: HelpAge International Foreword Fore
Page 13 and 14: In 1950, there were 205 million per
Page 15 and 16: The way forward In many parts of th
Page 17 and 18: Chapter 1 of the report provides an
Page 19 and 20: Chapter 1: Setting the scene In 195
Page 21 and 22: Discussions with older people in So
Page 23 and 24: There are also marked sub-regional
Page 25 and 26: The difference between current life
Page 27 and 28: The implications of increasing life
Page 29 and 30: The challenges of population ageing
Page 31 and 32: The response: The Madrid Internatio
Page 33 and 34: When the law was passed we started
Page 35 and 36: Chapter 2: A fresh look at evidence
Page 37 and 38: I take care of eight grandchildren
Page 39: Older people in the Philippines mar
Page 43 and 44: A major challenge in interpreting p
Page 45 and 46: social (non-contributory) pensions
Page 47 and 48: The global financial and economic c
Page 49 and 50: Table 2: Selection of social pensio
Page 51 and 52: South Africa’s Old Age Pension co
Page 53 and 54: I’m lucky to have a large pension
Page 55 and 56: Antonio Olmos/HelpAge International
Page 57 and 58: Computer training in Ireland. Rapid
Page 59 and 60: Transforming lives through literacy
Page 61 and 62: The rise of non-communicable diseas
Page 63 and 64: Dementia - a global concern Dementi
Page 65 and 66: Risk factors for chronic diseases T
Page 67 and 68: Many of the determinants of poor he
Page 69 and 70: Hospital care in Haiti. Older peopl
Page 71 and 72: Living longer with HIV Among infect
Page 73 and 74: Training of care providers and heal
Page 75 and 76: Age-friendly environments “Whatev
Page 77 and 78: Fixed-rate bus fares for people age
Page 79 and 80: In the UK, 45 per cent of 55-75 yea
Page 81 and 82: Workers in rural informal labour fo
Page 83 and 84: Urban life also has negative aspect
Page 85 and 86: Ageing and environmental change Cli
Page 87 and 88: A refugee in Dadaab, Kenya. A surve
Page 89 and 90: Global response In the past 10 year
Page 91 and 92:
In Myanmar, volunteers from older p
Page 93 and 94:
I give my mother my love “My moth
Page 95 and 96:
Exposing elder abuse and discrimina
Page 97 and 98:
Government response Few countries h
Page 99 and 100:
Teresa Minja of the Tanzania Social
Page 101 and 102:
On a different yet equally importan
Page 103 and 104:
News, television, film and advertis
Page 105 and 106:
Chapter 3: A review of progress The
Page 107 and 108:
At least 17 countries have approved
Page 109 and 110:
Table 2: Examples of surveys and re
Page 111 and 112:
In a few countries, including the D
Page 113 and 114:
South Africa’s National Archives
Page 115 and 116:
Residents and staff of a care home
Page 117 and 118:
Regional preparations for the secon
Page 119 and 120:
Regional Strategy for Implementatio
Page 121 and 122:
Since 2011, Peru’s National Solid
Page 123 and 124:
A great-grandmother in Viet Nam, wh
Page 125 and 126:
In preparation for an analysis of p
Page 127 and 128:
More specific recommendations are:
Page 129 and 130:
service policies across sectors and
Page 131 and 132:
In some countries, programmes to su
Page 133 and 134:
Chapter 4: The voices of older pers
Page 135 and 136:
Older persons’ responses to the M
Page 137 and 138:
Health in older age Overall, partic
Page 139 and 140:
In Kyrgyzstan, older people raised
Page 141 and 142:
Some also refer to the shifting rel
Page 143 and 144:
“Older people were also invited t
Page 145 and 146:
“Older women can do many things.
Page 147 and 148:
“Pension fund officers treat olde
Page 149 and 150:
“In the past there was only one h
Page 151 and 152:
“People with mental disorders are
Page 153 and 154:
In various aspects of daily life, o
Page 155 and 156:
Another barrier to tackling abuse -
Page 157 and 158:
Based on these recommendations, a f
Page 159 and 160:
Chapter 5: The way forward “Older
Page 161 and 162:
concern in developed countries, whi
Page 163 and 164:
Capacity development for an ageing
Page 165 and 166:
Specific actions according to the P
Page 167 and 168:
Percentage of total population aged
Page 169 and 170:
Page 171 and 172:
Page 173 and 174:
Page 175 and 176:
Page 177 and 178:
Page 179 and 180:
7. Unemployment rate of older perso
Page 181 and 182:
17. Number and proportion of public
Page 183 and 184:
In most countries, it proved feasib
Page 185 and 186:
30. OECD, Pensions at a Glance 2009
Page 187 and 188:
156. UNAIDS, Together We Will End A
Page 189 and 190:
286. US States Government Accountab
Page 191 and 192:
UNFPA, the United Nations Populatio
show all

Ageing in the Twenty-First Century: - HelpAge International

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?