Reality check: How are countries taking care of their ageing populations?

Shobha Shukla, CNS (Citizen News Service)
As fertility rates decline and life expectancy increases, the proportion of people aged 60 and above is growing globally. Global average life expectancy has increased from 48 years in 1950 to 68 years in 2010 and is expected to become 81 years by the end of the century. Nearly 60% of the world’s over 60 population resides in the Asia Pacific region and this number is expected to more than quadruple by 2050. While people living longer is a cause for celebration, this demographic transition towards an ageing society in the Asia-Pacific region brings new challenges with deep social, economic and political ramifications.

For age is opportunity no less than youth itself...

Shobha Shukla, CNS (Citizen News Service)

"…As the evening twilight fades away, the sky is filled with stars invisible by day" are the immortal words of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Alas! this does not hold ground for many people in countries of Asia Pacific (and maybe elsewhere too). The elderly are getting pushed more into a dark night devoid of stars.

[Podcast] Fighting poverty, isolation and neglect for ageing populations in India

Moving beyond stereotypes: Responding to unheeded needs of the ageing populations

Shobha Shukla, CNS (Citizen News Service)
[Listen/download the podcast] Dr John Roland Beard, Director of Department of Ageing and Life-Course at the World Health Organization (WHO) was one of the key speakers at the HelpAge Asia Pacific Regional Conference on Economic Implications of Ageing in Hanoi, Viet Nam. He spoke to Citizen News Service (CNS) in an exclusive interview on how to effectively advance the agenda of the ageing populations.

[Podcast] Thelma Kay speaks on ageing under gender lens

Female face of ageing in Asia Pacific

Shobha Shukla, CNS (Citizen News Service)
With declining fertility rates and increasing life expectancy, the proportion of people aged 60 and over is growing globally. There are currently 868 million people aged 60 or over worldwide (12.5% of the global population). Nearly two-thirds (533 million) of them are in the Asia Pacific region and this region is at the forefront of the global phenomenon of population ageing. Due to their longer life expectancy, women constitute the majority (53.5%) of the population aged 60 or older in this region. In 2013, there were 229 million older men and 261 million women above 60 in the Asia-Pacific region.

[Podcast] Interview with Dr John Beard, Director, WHO Dept of Ageing and Life-course